


Start A Revolution From My Bed.

by rainbowslovehl (Larrymateforlife)



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, American Harry, American Louis, Asexual Character, Asexual Harry, Asexual Louis, Dorms, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, M/M, Misunderstandings, No Smut, Oblivious Louis, Prank Wars, Roommates, but they're not actual pranks, but they're not quite enemies, hence, they just want to irritate one another a lot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-07
Updated: 2018-05-08
Packaged: 2019-05-02 11:57:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 57,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14544225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Larrymateforlife/pseuds/rainbowslovehl
Summary: “All of my tracksuits are expensive, alright.”“Yeah but at the end of the day they’re still streetwear,” he quipped airily, smirking as if he had said something clever.Louis cocked an eyebrow, taking a step closer and raising his chin up to meet his eyes. He was even more disarmingly beautiful from up close, golden flecks in his green, green eyes. But he had spots and blemishes on his nose, so at least he was not perfect. Good, that.“You know mate, you might look that you’ve walked straight off the runway but you don’t know shit about actual fashion.”Louis is ready to live on his own, in a dorm, in a new city. He is ready to make new friends, have fun and study a little. But he is not ready for Harry, his pretentious roommate who is out to ruin Louis' sleep and make his dorm life a complete hell.





	1. Chapter One.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [rachel1118](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rachel1118/gifts).



> Hi! rachel118. All the prompts you had given were so great that I couldn't just write one and leave. This prompt called out to me and I launched into the longest and fastest fic I have ever written. A combination, which has startling. I hope you like it.  
> I'm ace, so everything is derived from how I think. Asexuality doesn't always have to be a struggle or a crisis sometimes it can be just... fine like it was for me. There's virtually no angst or regretting being asexual or anything, cuz you shouldn't be ashamed. Anyway.  
> I've never been to LA, I'm not American and neither have I stayed in a dorm. So everything I've written is from internet research, asking about dorms from my beta. I've even based the dorm room on a LA university but it's not that important. If I've got anything wrong or something then I'm sorry for that.  
> A lot of thanks to my two friends and cheerleaders who helped me a lot, lot on this fic. Thank you Ammu and Sofia, who read it for me and assured me it was good. My lovely cheerleaders they are. Also Liz, who is anxiously waiting for this.  
> A lot of thanks to my beta [Paula](http://goldbootsandvans.tumblr.com/), who made this more American haha.  
> Title is from Don't Look Back In Anger by Oasis (and haha you'll know why that song).

Louis pushed the door open with his hip as he tightened his grip on the cardboard box in his arms. It seemed as if he was the first one, since there was no one apart from him in the room. He sighed, having expected as much as he made his way in.

Moving into a college dorm on the opposite side of the state in an unfamiliar environment and an unknown city was hard. It was harder when you were all alone, with your friends having moved to different states and cities. It wasn’t as if he wanted them close, but a little familiarity would have been nice. His family had been too busy to make the six hour drive with him but he understood. His mom was too tired plus she had all his siblings to take care of and he assured her he’d manage alone. She had promised she’s drive to LA later in the year when he was more acquainted with the city. So right now it was just him and his bags, until he inevitably made some new friends. He was sure to make new friends since Louis was great at it... well, when he wanted to.

He trudged back into the hall after depositing his box by the bed, picking up his other two bags and dragging them in. In the hallway, he could feel the same rush of excitement of his fellow neighbors. He smiled at someone who passed by, nodding at him before walking in. He pushed back the door with his heel, sighing when it didn’t shut all the way through but walked in anyway. Louis could eventually get used to the loneliness yet congested feeling of dorm life, where he would be surrounded by same aged boys. It would be different from back home, where he lived in a house consisting of seventy percent females. He loved his sisters, all five of them and Ernie, and missed being apart. But he needed some space. So speaking of.

Louis fished his phone out of his pocket, hitting the first speed dial contact and pressing it to his phone.

“Hello?” his mom answered on the third ring, sounding a little hushed. “Louis, baby, did you reach Los Angeles safely?”

“Yes mom I did,” he said, smiling as he pushed his hair out of his eyes. He glanced casually at the blank walls, of which he had plans to decorate. He would do it soon, which could range from tomorrow to three weeks later. He was lazy, what could he say. “The room is lovely, by the way, even if it feels strange being here.”

“That’s nice,” she said, a smile evident in her voice. There was a high-pitched shriek behind her and she huffed. There was a sound of a door shutting before everything on her side went relatively quiet. “So are you planning to start unpacking yet? Or are you going to delay it to very last second and then claim it was easier to just not unpack?”

Louis hummed noncommittally as he crouched down. He rummaged through the box, which was filled with random assortment of things which previously stood on his desk back home. His fingers brushed against the smooth glass of a photo frame and he pulled out to prop over his currently desk. He smiled back at the happy faces of his family. “I will unpack soon, mom.”

She hummed disbelievingly, knowing him all too well as she laughed. Louis’ smile widened at the sound as he looked around the room, taking it in. It was certainly smaller than his room back home, with a smaller bed too but it wasn’t as bad as he had expected. He wouldn’t get much privacy but at least he had an entire wall and corner to himself. Louis had intended to get a single dorm, but he had applied too late and he had to settle. He was willing to compromise if only his roommate turned out to be nice. And anyways, weren’t loud neighbors, lack of privacy and sleepless nights part of the whole ‘college experience’? He was determined to have that... maybe. “So has your roommate arrived yet?”

“No, I don’t think so,” he said, looking at the untouched, other side of the room. The window was closer to that bed, opening to a view of trees. It wasn’t a stellar view but it would do. “He’s not here yet. But hopefully, he isn’t one of those rude kinds or weird ones. You know I would hate that.”

“I know you would, boo you’re too picky,” she said, chuckling empathetically. He agreed with her as he hummed. There was some vague rustling sound on her end followed by muffled calls for her. She sighed. “I miss you already, Lou.”

“Me too, mom,” he said as he smiled and flopped onto his bed. He winced, holding back a groan as he felt the wind being knocked out of him. He hadn’t expected for the mattress to be firm, too used to the softness of his own bed. “But I’ll be coming back home for Christmas, you know, which isn’t too far away now.”

She hummed indulgently. “You know, your siblings are getting restless without me there.”

“I can imagine,” he said, chuckling. Tomlinsons were known to be loud and stubborn, all of them determined for usually the wrong reasons. They were quite a handful, especially together hence Louis considered his mother a saint for handling them so well. He considered himself the quieter one of the lot, which he was a menace only occasionally. Anyone who met Louis would never agree but then they usually hadn’t met his siblings. He was a comparative angel when in a good mood, and completely biased. “At least I wouldn’t have to listen anymore about their bad hair days. I would just have to listen to bad music, loud boys and... I don’t even know. But it would be a good change.”

His mother laughed. “Enjoy it while it lasts. Get your peace away from here. I can’t get that so I’ll have to deal with them and I’m seventy percent sure one of the twins is crying.” A door creaked open and the intensity of noise increased before going quiet again. “And sure enough, Doris is crying. I’ll talk to you later, boo. So don’t forget to unpack now otherwise you would be dancing with one leg in your jeans on the first day while searching for your lucky sweatshirt.”

“That was one time!” he protested before joining in on her laugher and shaking his head. “Goodbye mom, take care. I love you and the girls and Ernie and Dan. Send my love.”

“Bye baby,” she said before cutting the call. Louis kept his phone on the desk before closing his eyes for a few seconds. His body ached from sitting for hours and he needed some rest. But he had a few things he had deemed important to do on his way and one of them was sheets. He reluctantly got up to pull out the sheets he had brought along before spreading it over the bed. He pressed all the creases out with his hands before throwing himself on the bed again, gently this time. His legs were hanging off the bed since he had yet to take them off and he didn’t want to dirty his new sheets. It would better for him to put off laundry as long as he could, so an uncomfortable position was to be dealt with. His hip groaned in protest but he didn’t move, closing his eyes.

Louis laid there for a few more minutes, taking in the sounds around him and reveling in it. The open door brought in a lot of conversation and he loved snooping on them. He could hear the distant sound of someone arguing with another person and the sound mingled with the quiet sobs of someone’s mother. There were excited whispers of people who passed his door before they quietened into nothing. Louis smiled, the contagious excitement filling him with joy inside. The conversations were soothing in a way, stopping him from getting lost in his mind while lulling him into a trance. It wasn’t strong enough to be called sleep but it was close enough. His limbs felt heavy and he didn’t know whether a minute had passed or sixty. But he was still listening in to the sounds outside, which was probably how he heard that strong gait outside. It was sharp, clear sound of boots hitting the floor of the hallway outside, creeping in closer by the second. Something about the sound piqued Louis’ curiosity as he lifted his head up to look through the small gap of his door. He expected the boot clad individual to pass him by but he was taken by surprise when that didn’t happen. Golden boots came into view and Louis’ eyes widened as the door swung open.

Louis frowned, blinking blearily as he stared at the said boots before moving his gaze all the way up. It was a boy all right, his new roommate most likely, who stood by the door in white, skin tight jeans on thin, long legs. He was wearing a dark shirt patterned with red flowers and geometric shapes, with a few buttons left open to show ink on his chest. His hair was curly, flowing down to his shoulders and flew behind him in slow motion. Louis was pretty sure there was no wind to carry it yet there it was, gliding smoothly on the nonexistent breeze. It surely was a miracle. The boy had sunglasses perched on his nose, hiding his eyes but it did show his rosy cheeks and slightly pouty lips. There were a few more tattoos smattered on his arms, seemingly random but it contrasted with the softness of his face.

He was beautiful, if Louis was to describe him in one word. He was art in motion, a paradox crafted with care by someone was his asexual opinion. Or as a sexual person would say, the boy was downright hot.

He was looking around the room, head turning side to side as his eyebrows lifted over the sunglasses. The boy slowly took them off before perching it on the cleft of his shirt and making it dip lower than it was. Louis could finally see his eyes then, which were green as freshly cut grass and glided over his side of the room before he rested on Louis. Their eyes met for a brief second, but the moment dragged on where Louis could feel himself being dragged closer to him. It was a strange feeling and gone too soon when he saw the guy’s smooth expression break. His lips twitched downwards in a frown and his eyes glinted with... disgust? He wasn’t sure if he was reading it right but that's what it seemed to be. He tried to ignore it.

“Who the fuck are you?” he drawled, voice deep and mellow and filled with an unknown emotion. He frowned, watching Louis before looking over at his own bed then back. It was confusing for Louis, really.

“Hi,” Louis greeted as he kept his voice placid, ignoring the deepening of the boy’s frown. He smiled, wide and genuine as he expected to get one in return. But the boy’s expression remained unchanged, except for the boy’s eyebrows rising higher in disbelief. Did Louis do something wrong? Or was he not supposed to say anything at all? What even? “I’m Louis. Your new roommate.”

“This can’t be,” he said, as he started to shake his head slowly. His lips pressed together in a thin life while his fingers played with his rings. Louis watched it all with a frown as well, watching and getting confused by the jittery movements and the horrified expression. “I can’t be with... with you. I just, I told her no. I can’t have a roommate!”

“What?”

“I just,” he started again before shaking his head and breaking off whatever he was going to say. He let out a sigh, fingers running through his hair and closing his eyes for a brief second. Louis tilted his head to a side, feeling fascinated still by the movements of his roommate. He hadn’t introduced himself yet, lost in his external musing and frustrations. He was looking Louis up and down now, gaze lingering a beat longer on his old black shirt and sweatpants. It was an assessing gaze, his lips twisting down with each passing second and Louis felt judged. He felt judged under those glassy green eyes, hated by his words and feeling small in the big room. He had been on the receiving end of that type of gaze plenty times, never liking how awful and small it made him feel. He lifted himself properly on his elbows, shifting until his shoes were touching the ground and his hips finally comfortable. He puffed up his chest, knowing he would get uglier words and braced himself to retort. “I needed a singles dorm.”

“Then shouldn’t you have booked one before?” Louis bit back, tone being a little more scathing than he wanted it to be. He watched the boy’s expression pinch together, pouting before one thin eyebrow rose higher than the other. Louis tilted his chin up defiantly, challengingly. “You look like you can afford it.”

“What’s the supposed to mean?” he asked, sounding whiny. He pushed his bag – which Louis hadn’t noticed at first – higher on his shoulder. Louis leaned back on his elbows, eyebrows raised and he watched the boy track his motion. “I did ask someone to do it for me but she apparent didn’t. And now I’m stuck here with you.”

Louis squawked, clutching his chest with one hand and looked on with an offended expression. It made him almost fall back but he managed to support himself on his other arm. He always knew his dramatics would harm him one day but he didn’t want them to embarrass him right now. “Drop the act, alright. This whole pretentious hipster thing you’ve got going on isn’t really a good look on you.”

“I can say the same about you,” he spat, licking his lips as he raised his other eyebrow as well. And Louis felt... angry. Annoyance bubbling in his chest, making him mad about everything about the guy standing there in front of him. Annoyed at his ringer fingers which were always twitching in the need to clutch something to his toes, which curled inwards. Even the way he shifted from foot to foot annoyed him as did his eyes, which lingers on his legs. “What even are those? Sweatpants?”

“They are the expensive ones,” he protested, keeping his voice steady even as it rose in volume. He didn’t think it through when he jumped to his feet, taking quick steps so that he was closer to the man than before. He stopped only when they were almost toe to toe and the other guy’s rich cologne troubled his nose. It might not have been that good an idea, Louis thought, since he realized he was at least a few inches shorter than the other boy. He simply towered over Louis, as if he was significant. Louis’ chest was heaving, eyes narrowed as he looked into his roommate’s eyes. The sweatpants were expensive indeed, the bottom half of a tracksuit piece by an up and coming designer. Sure, they weren’t as expensive as the shirt the guy was wearing but in a few months, it would be. He knew it. “All of my tracksuits are expensive, alright.”

“Yeah but at the end of the day they’re still streetwear,” he quipped airily, smirking as if he had said something clever. Louis cocked an eyebrow, taking a step closer and raising his chin up to meet his eyes. He was even more disarmingly beautiful from up close, golden flecks in his green, green eyes. But he had spots and blemishes on his nose, so at least he was not perfect. Good, that.

“You know mate, you might look that you’ve walked straight off the runway but you don’t know shit about actual fashion.” Louis’ fists were balled to his side, words sharp and fire in his eyes. His dominant posture made the other take a step back quickly with his smirk faltering. Louis let his smile turn smug, feeling satisfied by the reaction and happy. “Streetwear is going to be huge soon, mark my words. And you, my friend, will be going out of fashion. Just watch.”

“I, uh,” he squeaked before clearing his throat. He looked taken aback with the bite in Louis’ words, eyes widening but soon his mask slid into place. His expression smoothened over to something vacant as he crossed his arms over his chest. Louis did the same, wiggling his eyebrows in challenge. “Well, I doubt that.”

Louis couldn’t hold in his snort, knowing he had managed to make the boy lose his footing. He had met a lot of snobs before and had wanted to take one down. So this was his moment his thought as he flicked his fringe to side daintily as he looked up at him through his lashes. Despite the boy’s face marred with arrogance, his looked nothing short of beautiful. Louis had seen a lot of beautiful people before, most of them turning out to be assholes later on. So he was immune to beauty, not affected by the boy in front of him in the slightest. There was a reason why Louis considered himself to be lucky to not feel any sort of sexual attraction to anyone. Since it surely would have been a problem right now to anyone else but him. Louis was still filled to the brim with anger as he observed his face and let himself be calm, still. “That’s all you got?”

“Fuck you,” he spat, lips forming into a pout. He looked visibly ruffled, cheeks red as his finger absently tucked and untucked his hair behind his ear.

Louis licked his bottom lip, barely holding back the amusement he felt as he tilted his head to a side. “That’s all you got?”

A terse silence followed with both of them holding their ground and staring. Louis was nothing but stubborn as he held the boy’s gaze while willing him to look away. The boy looked on slightly affected but still as if he expected an apology. Neither of them was willing to give in to the other and an uncomfortable, heavy silence enveloped them both. It was his roommate who broke their stare first, looking away slowly and Louis counted it as a win. He would have voiced it but the boy had now turned on his heel as he dragged himself to the door. He pulled the door open, half out already when he turned, shooting Louis a glare. He was caught by surprise but not the slightest bit intimidated as he stared back impassively, tapping his foot. “I didn’t want a roommate because I knew it would be an obnoxious and annoying one. But hey, looks like I found one.”

Louis gasped, offended at the choice of words and description he had gotten. He ran the door as quick as his feet could carry, leaning himself out to watch his roommate get further away. It would be endearing how he walked, with his shoulders hunched in and occasionally tripped over nothing as if drunk. But not right now, nope. “I’m not that thrilled to have you either, mate.”

He could see the exact moment the boy heard, if his back stiffening was any indication. He smiled smugly before remembering that everyone else in the hallway had heard the same, staring at him in confusion. He spied the boy right next door who was staring at him with a thoughtful, imploring gaze and Louis felt uncomfortable by it. So he just gave him a blank, stiff smile and a wave before he walked back in, this time letting the door bang shut. He winced at the noise that followed, taking in a deep breath. His thoughts were a tangled mess, anger filling him which he tried to stifle. How dare his roommate say that? And how dare he say that just for Louis to make a fool of himself. It was awful, and his year probably would be now.

Louis stomped his way to his desk, picking up his phone and plugging it to charge. He then pushed the box under his bed before removing his shoes and falling back onto the bed harshly. His back hurt, feeling the air get knocked out of him due to the fall. He groaned, turning on his stomach and laying there for a while and let his anger stew and soon fizzle.

He was feeling exhausted again, once all the anger left him. He needed to rest, feeling drained from the drive and the fight. So he turned onto his back and stared at the unfamiliar ceiling. He wanted to go back home, wanted to be with his mom and quit on his dreams of living alone in the city. He couldn’t do this, especially not with the roommate like that. But then he couldn’t give up now as well, not when he was determined to do it right.

“Louis wouldn’t give up because of a shitty roommate,” he said out loud, very aware of that he had referred to himself in third person. He couldn’t care less.

Louis closed his eyes, burying himself into his pillow and sighed. He needed to sleep right now, sleep for a few hours at least. And with no alarm to wake him, he fell asleep, anger filing completely out of his system.

**

There was a distant clanging sound, as Louis’ bleary mind noticed. It grew louder slowly as the thoughts in his head cleared and before he knew it, he was awake. There was bright light directed at his eyes, streaming in through the door. He threw an arm over his eyes to shield himself before squinting to see who it was that had entered. Louis was disappointed to see the shadow of a person with long hair and groaned softly. He turned over to his side and stared resolutely at the wall until the light faded to black.

Somewhere in his head, Louis had hoped that his roommate, who had almost stormed off would be so enraged that he wouldn’t be back. But he also knew it was too good to be true. So when his rude, posh hipster of a roommate returned, that too at what seemed like the dead of the night, his mood soured. Since Louis had firsthand seen how unstable on his feet the guy was, he wasn’t surprised or worried when he heard the thuds and yelps which broke the silence of the night. Louis could probably trace his path just from his heavy footsteps and thuds but it was all assumptions. He counted seconds in his head and at the sound of a fourth thud, he turned back on his other side. He found his roommate close to his own bed, face scrunched up and half lit by the moonlight as he clutched at his foot. He shook his head and sighed and Louis squinted to see better in the dark. He was wearing the same outfit from the afternoon, it seemed, and his boots shone faintly in the moonlight. Louis shut his eyes quickly and breathed evenly when his roommate turned to look at him. He held in his breath, ears on high alert and he counted to ten before he opened his eyes again.

Louis found him sitting on his bed this time, combing through his hair with his fingers. He gently toed off his boots and placed them by the edge of his bed before he swung his long legs up and lied down. He laid there eagle spread for a good two minutes before he flipped onto his stomach. A few more minutes later, the room was filled with soft snores coming from the other side while Louis sighed, wide awake. There went any chance of him falling back to sleep now. Louis lied on his back, feeling impatient as he stared at the ceiling with his stomach rumbling every five minutes. He was counting in his head and spent exactly seven minutes laying there, tossing and turning before he gave up on his sleep and sat up. He felt woozy due to the head rushed and subconsciously looked over to his roommate’s bed. He had turned onto his back again, arms wrapped around himself with his mouth slightly open. And yes, he was still cute but it didn’t erase his rudeness from yesterday.

Louis rummaged through his bag, hoping just hoping he would find something in there to eat. He groaned happily when his fingers wrapped around a granola bar, which he remembered his mother keeping in there ‘just in case’. He thanked her mentally before chomping down on the granola bar, which usually wasn’t his favorite snack. His eyes soon wandered to the sleeping figure on the other bed and he was staring at him as he ate, without realizing it. There was something about the boy, surely. Louis blinked to rid himself of the trance and dusted the crumbs off his clothes and stood up, stretching himself. He fetched his slippers out of his bag, which his mom had specially brought for him to wear to the communal toilets. He took his phone off charging and found it to be one in the night. He wasn’t surprised.

The hallway was silent, just like he had expected since obviously everyone was asleep at the hour. He quickly found the communal at the end of the hallway and slipped in quietly. It was empty and Louis stood in front of one of the urinals. He closed his eyes, frowning when the door opened, forehead creasing. What were the odds that someone apart from him was awake at this very hour, he thought. He was confused when whoever the person was stood right behind him, knocking their shoulders too and forcing Louis to open his eyes too. He looked to his right, finding another boy there who was looking right back at him with twinkling blue eyes and a wide grin that took over his face.

Louis was pretty sure that taking the next urinal when plenty others were empty was inappropriate. But then so was looking at the person peeing beside you, which was doing as well so he averted his eyes. He couldn’t help but think that the guy seemed familiar, but he couldn’t place him where from. He zipped up and quickly walked to the sink to wash his hands. He had barely turned the tap on when the boy bounded next to him again, turning on his tap as well. Louis strictly focused on his hands, letting the silence linger and washing his hands for a longer time that what was necessary. Louis had been contemplating take a shower before but he didn’t feel like, lest the guy popped in the next stall. He wanted him to leave.

“Hey man,” the stranger said instead, and when Louis looked at him through the mirror, he was grinning. He was way too cheery for the hour, dressed down and sporting a wide grin. He really did not understand the concept of space, Louis thought with a sigh as he gave him a quick smile through the mirror. He switched off the tap, settling on going back to his room as he wiped his hands on his pants. He wondered if the boy was high or he just was this happy all the time. “Can’t sleep either?”

Louis was about to walk out the door and pace his room or something. But he paused at the question, wondering whether or not to answer it. He stared at the guy, who didn’t look at all bothered by Louis’ lack of response, since he continued.

“I drank like a ton of coffee a few hours ago and now my eyes refuse to shut, even for a little while.” He laughed, his eyes wild and presence so cheerful that Louis couldn’t help but smile back. It did explain why he looked so high; of course he was high on coffee.

“That sucks.” He turned to look back in the mirror, having caught a glimpse of himself. Looking closely he found that his face was puffy, especially the area under his eyes. He frowned, rubbing underneath his eyes. It did nothing to help. “I was woken up by my roommate, who walked in like an hour ago and stomped his way to his bed. And now I can’t fall asleep again.”

“No mate, that sucks,” he said, clucking empathetically. He turned off the tap and flailed his hands on the other side so that the water droplets flew all over. Louis took a step back discreetly to escape them. “I’ve got me a good roommate though. He offered me some cookies he brought from home, all of them. But I’m not completely selfish so I only took half of them. Were tasty, I tell ya. And after that coffee, we went out for some coffee. He told me to take decaf then, should have listened. But oh well here we are.”

He finished it with a noncommittal shrug and Louis chuckled, more at his enthusiasm than the story. He was a good one, even if a bit strange and touchy. “Can we exchange roommates, then? My roommate just walked into the room and started criticizing me before he walked out again.”

“Ah I wish we could have, mate,” he said, eyes bright and tone genuine. Louis found himself taking a liking to this bright, high-on-coffee lad. “Hopefully he is just one of them guys who had a bad day. But I’m Niall. Niall Horan and I’m part Irish.”

“Louis Tomlinson,” he said, laughing and it made crinkles form by his eyes. He was genuine this time. He squinted his eyes as he tried to remember some part genetic thing. “Oh and I’m one eight Belgian.”

“Wow that's interesting,” he mused. He immediately clutched to Louis’ hand to shake it. Generally, Louis would have no problem with that. But Niall’s hand was sopping wet and wetting his own so Louis did have a problem with that. “And I’m so glad to have met you. Are you sure you’re not French?”

Louis laughed, shaking his head. “Oh no I wish, though.” Niall dropped his hand after, making Louis feel relieved as he discreetly wiped his hands on the back of his sweatpants. “I think I should uh go now.”

Niall nodded solemnly and Louis had to admit he wished Niall would ask him to stay. He waited for a beat but Niall didn’t say a word so he moved towards the door. He would have loved the company and god knows why he had told him he had to leave when he had no other place to be. He took two heavy steps towards the door when Niall grabbed his hand and making him turn. “Oh wait. Do you have to go?”

“Uh no,” Louis said, chuckling nervously as he looked back at Niall. “Do you have something?”

“Yeah I was thinking,” he said, leaning in conspiringly and waggled his eyebrows. He let the sentence hang in the air, making Louis curious. The silence stretched and he was about to ask what he was up to. “I feel like going to McDonald’s right now. What do you say? Want to join me for a midnight adventure?”

“Yes!” Louis exclaimed, not even bothering to seem reluctant at the prospect. Food and companionship was exactly what he needed at this late hour. And on cue, his stomach grumbled, startling them both into laughter. Their laughs echoed back at them in the silence. Louis couldn’t believe he had been upset a few minutes back. He felt just as happy as he had when he stepped foot in the building. Without hesitation he snaked his arm around Niall’s waist and pulled him close. There was something about him that was familiar and comfortable, once you moved past his weirdness that is. “I have a feeling we’re going to be great friends.”

“That’s what I thought this afternoon,” Niall exclaimed, voice too loud for the confines of the communal bathroom. And the familiarity made sense then, as Louis realized it was the same guy from next doors who had stared at him. So did Niall follow him in here or something? It wouldn’t be too far fetched. And before he could go down that path, Niall dragged him towards the door. “So let’s go get some freaking nuggets because I’m hungry as fuck.”

Louis’ stomach grumbled in agreement again and made them break into fits of laughter. Their voices were loud in the hallway so they shushed each other. Why was Niall next door and not his roommate? Why was Louis stuck with the roommate he had? He didn’t get it. Louis knew he had it in him to charm people and it was just his roommate who wasn’t charmed yet. It dawned on him that they would be sharing the same space for a year. Fuck, he thought as he stepped outside.

**

Louis sneaked back in during the early hours of morning, eyes heavy with sleep. He glanced briefly towards the other bed, finding his roommate curled into a ball in the centre. It was an adorable sight, his hands crossed over his chest but Louis didn’t crack a smile. Instead he walked straight to his bed and fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, decidedly not thinking about his roommate.

Louis woke up to light blue sky outside, and similarly colored eyes staring down at him. It gave him the fright of his life as he let out a girly scream.

“For fucks sake Niall!” he gasped, quickly scrambling away from the said boy. He pulled his sheets up in the process, as he flattened himself to the wall. Niall, though, was laughing boisterously, as he retreated to the other end of Louis’ bed. With him, as he had realized yesterday, everything Louis said might as well be the funniest thing ever. It had made him feel special, when he laughed at his terrible jokes but not at the moment he didn’t. His heart was still racing in his chest, shocked by the event before and his brain was sleep lagged. Yet, he didn’t understand how Niall had gotten in. “How did you get in?”

“Ah easy the door was open,” he said, nodding towards the door, which was now closed. Niall was still dressed in the clothes from last night, hair rumpled and a wide smile firmly in place. “I came to knock on your door right, but it just swung open. So I let myself in and waited. Hope you don’t mind?”

Louis did mind, in fact but he shook his head despite it as he lowered his sheets. He rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hand as he glanced around the room. It was empty. Expect for him or Niall no one was there, which meant his roommate had disappeared again. And he might have been the one to leave the door open as well. His bag was resting by the foot of his bed, while his bed was done and wrapped in new sheets. Not just any sheets, but light pink ones that had weird, long stemmed, pink flowers all over it. It was oddly pleasing to look at, Louis could admit, as he stared at it. It was so out of place in the room that it fit with his roommate’s image Louis had in his head. It was quirky and bold to decorate your side in pink and Louis admired it. Maybe his roommate, whose name he still didn’t know, wasn’t so bad. There was no note left for him, which Louis hadn’t expected in the first place so he didn’t bother with it.

“He doesn’t seem to be an asshole from that,” Niall chimed in, making Louis turn towards him. Niall’s eyebrows were raised as he looked at the bed, a small smile forming on his face as he looked back. He shrugged when he saw Louis’ expression, raising his hands in a surrendering motion. “Just saying there, mate. But hey, don’t judge a book by its pink cover and all that. Am I right?”

Louis chuckled, lifting his shoulder in a half shrug. His fingers were subconsciously playing with his hair, flattening the strands which stuck out. He knew he was looking like a mess just from the state of his hair, but then Niall had already seen him last night. So why bother, he thought as he stifled a yawn against the back of his hand. “I told you Ni, he’s like this weird, posh hipster person. And when he came in, he was wearing a flamingo shirt. So the floral sheets aren’t surprising, and neither is the pink. But let’s not talk about him. What about you? And more importantly, how are you awake this early?”

“Oh,” he said, eyebrows rising again as he gave him a teeth-baring grin. “So I fell asleep quickly after we got back, yeah. And it felt like the next second that I was being woken up by my roommate, Liam, who had just returned from his early morning run.” Louis’ eyebrows rose at that, making Niall chuckle and nod. “I know right. Who wakes up that early? But he does, every day he claims. He woke me up to ask me if I wanted to get breakfast with him, so I asked if he could bring something. I didn’t expect him to, but he agreed.”

“Wow,” Louis exclaimed, laughing and shaking his head at his misfortune. He could have gotten Niall or Liam as his roommates, who were next doors and lovely. But instead he was stuck with a jerk as his roommate, who had been rude since they moment they met. And apparently didn’t even want to room with him. He wasn’t feeling bitter, he swore. Life was great, he added, attaching a passive aggressive upside down smiley to it in his head.

Niall nodded. “Yeah so anyway. I was awake and came here to check if you were too. So here we are then.”

“Here we are,” he repeated, shrugging. Niall was so happy, so unbothered by the fact that his roommate had woken him early in the morning. But then why should he have been upset even. His roommate had offered him cookies yesterday, when they barely knew each other and was now bringing him up breakfast. Louis tried not to feel bitter about it, as he lamented his fate. He stood up, stretching his arms and the cracking of his back muscles felt good. The mattress was really stiff and it might give him a backache soon. He looked outside, and from the color of the sky, it couldn’t have been more than three hours that he had slept. He tended to be grumpy in the mornings, which would be tough to deal with once lectures started but hopefully he wouldn’t have to talk to anyone.

He glanced at his bags, which were unzipped and ready to be unpacked too. His mother had repeatedly told him to take the clothes out of the bag and not let him lie. So he would have to get to that soon. Then there was navigating around this huge campus, which he had two more days for. He picked up the bottle of water which he had brought in with him last night and finished the last of it in one big gulp. He capped it, wiping his mouth. “Not that I’m pushing you away or something but shouldn’t you be heading back to your room to eat breakfast?”

“Well I can,” he started, waggling his eyebrows to indicate something that Louis didn’t understand. He had noted last night that Niall really liked dramatic pauses, stopping in the middle of his sentences for absolutely not reason. Louis could say he related to it, but not at the moment. He waited, eyebrows raised. “But I don’t have to. Since I asked Liam to bring breakfast up here. So we all can have it together.”

Louis’ answering grin was just as bright as Niall’s, the remnants of his grumpiness wiping away. He walked up to Niall, cupping his hands around his cheeks. “You’re a lifesaver and he’s an angel. I could kiss you right now.”

“Then kiss me,” he said, making a kissy face and moving closer. Louis laughed, dropping his hands. He stepped away, shaking his head.

“Ew gross no,” he said, winking for good measure. Both of them laughed. “You’re a good looking lad but no. But as I was saying before, your roommate seems great. I want to meet him.”

“And you will,” he said, standing up and walking to Louis’ desk. His hand reached the pick the photo frame Louis had kept yesterday. He waved it front of Louis’ face, grinning widely. “And you’ve got a big family here, bro. Lots of sisters.”

“Six sisters and a brother,” he clarified, chuckling at his friend’s surprised face. “I miss them a lot already.”

Niall hummed, sitting down on Louis’ bed and patted the space beside him. “So sit with me and tell me all about them. I’m curious.”

So Louis, who never missed a chance to talk about his family, sat down beside him. With a wide grin, he told him all about them and waited for Liam, his angelic roommate.

**

Liam fished his phone out of his pocket, shifting the bag to his other hand. He texted Niall, his new vivacious roommate, asking which room he had to meet him in. He got a quick reply saying he was in the room next doors, so Liam nodded to himself and pocketed his phone. He was about to start walking towards the said room when a body crashed into him from behind. He shook due to the force of it but managed not to fall to floor. He turned, grabbing on to the person by their elbows and helped steady them instead.

Liam noticed he had long, dark hair which was tied back in a bun. He was wearing a long, black coat that he pulled tightly around himself as he stepped back. When he looked up, his big green eyes were filled with guilt and Liam smiled immediately, as was his instinct.

“Watch where you’re going,” the guy blurted, before his eyes widened. Liam’s smile didn’t drop, even as he watched the other shaking his head jerkily before lowering his eyes. He looked up, only for his eyes to be fixed on the gold chain Liam had around his neck.

“I’m sorry,” Liam said, even if both of them knew it wasn’t his fault. It made the other boy look up immediately, lips parted and eyes bugging. He took a deep breath, in that time Liam looked away to check on his bagels. Luckily they weren’t damaged, so he smiled when he looked back again.

“No _I’m_ sorry it’s my fault,” the green-eyed boy said hurriedly in one breath, slapping his hands over his face quickly. He peeked from between his fingers, eyes squinted before he groaned. He took a step back and then another, looking hesitant. “I have a problem of saying the wrong things when I’m anxious. Otherwise I’m fine just... I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Liam said, grinning as he shook his head. He could see the guy’s internal freak-out on his face, as he bit down on his bottom lip. Liam placed his hand on the guy’s shoulder in reassurance, and feeling him relax marginally. “I was standing in the middle of the hallway too, so someone was bound to crash right.”

“You’re so nice to me,” he whined. His hands were still covering his face, fingers digging in his cheeks before he dropped them. He was attempting to smile, even if it looked sheepish and guilty more than anything. Liam rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. He was always taught to be polite and nice, even to strangers. Also this guy looked distressed, so he felt like he should be reassured rather than be yelled at. “Let me apologize because I’m feeling even more guilty now. I’m Harry, and I’m very, very sorry. And no, don’t you say it back.”

Liam laughed, raising his hands up in surrender. “Alright I won’t. I’m Liam, by the way. So do you live on this floor?”

“Yup,” he said, blinking quickly at the change of topic but nodded. He was smiling a little more genuinely now, cheeks tinged pink and eyes a tad apologetic. Liam nodded his head to a side, motioning him silently to walk with him and Harry nodded once. Liam started walking and Harry was quick to fall in step with him, as they walked towards his destination. “You?”

“Yeah right over there,” he said, nodding towards his room which was still a few doors away. Harry nodded solemnly, as if he understood. He seemed like a good enough guy, even with his claims of saying the wrong things. He seemed to be anxious, fiddling with the buttons of his coat as his eyes shifted to look all over the place. “We’re going to have bagels, which I’ve got right here. And I have extras. It’s just me and my mates, so do you want to join us?”

“Um.” He clearly looked stumped by the invitation, lips quirking upwards. Liam looked on imploringly, as they stopped in front of the room Niall texted him the number of. He watched Harry take a deep breath and letting out a nervous laughter. “Thank you for the offer, Liam, I appreciate it. But I can’t intrude like that when we’ve just met. So some other time?”

“Sure,” he said easily, shrugging. He placed his hand on the door, making Harry look towards the door with an unreadable expression. “Well this is where I’m headed to. Room of a friend’s.”

“Oh,” he said, eyebrows pushing together in surprise before he smoothen his expression. “Okay alright then. I’ll just get going? Okay yeah. Bye Liam.”

Liam frowned at him, confused by the weird end to their conversation as he watched him walk away quickly in the other direction. His heels were clicking across the floor, sounding far away when Liam knocked on the door. It swung open easily, and he could hear two loud voices in the room, one of which he could recognize as Niall’s. He saw that the two of them lying together in one bed, strange enough, as they laughed. “I brought food.”

Liam held up the bag, and the two boys cheered loud, sitting up and making grabby hands. Liam shut the door behind him, shaking his head.

**

“So you’re saying I should give him another chance?” Louis asked, eyes narrowed with skepticism. He had heard it all right the first time, but he didn’t understand why. He bit into his bagel, careful not to break eye contact he had established. The crumbs stuck to his cheeks and fell down his shirt, which he would later have to clean. The bagel was delicious and he made a mental note to ask Liam for the address of the shop.

Liam, Niall’s roommate was an angel indeed. He greeted them with a warm smile, holding up warm food and didn’t flinch when both of them leapt at him like animals. He laughed as he handed them the bag and went to sit on the other bed, the one with pink sheets. He was nice, a bit of stickler about rules, he realized as Liam frowned when they mentioned their ‘midnight adventure’ but didn’t reprimand them. He let Louis have the extra bagel too, and Louis deemed him to be his best friend, for now. Niall protested a little, before laughing.

It was going well. Each of them talked about their respective families and hometowns, until Liam brought up the topic of roommates all of a sudden. Louis felt his frustration rush up as he told him about his encounter, watching a deep frown etch on Liam’s face. He nodded at the right parts, lips parting as if to say something but he never did. Niall had already been told about a few hours back, so he was just happily munching on his food. Liam told him it was awful of his roommate, before asking for the details of his appearance the next minute. Louis gave him it, feeling confused by the question and Liam nodding in understand. And after he was finished speaking, Liam advised him to give his roommate a second chance. And that confused him even more.

“I’m just saying,” he said with a full mouth, crumbs falling out. Louis raised his eyebrows, not minding the crumbs in the slightest but he had no clue where Liam was coming from on the roommate topic. He leaned forward, watching him intensely. “Maybe you should give him another chance. Some people tend to just fuck up their first impressions sometimes.”

“A personal experience?” Louis teased, chuckling. He hadn’t expected a response, but Liam nodded hesitantly, biting his lip. Louis frowned as he took it in, and maybe he should give him another chance. His roommate might surprise him. “Alright if you say, Payno, which by the way is your new nickname now. I don’t completely hate him yet. I just sorta thought he was having a bad day too. Didn’t I say that, Niall?”

“You did,” Niall agreed after swallowing. He was nodding enthusiastically, making Louis crack a smile. “Usually I’m good and nice, but if I’m tired I can be really cranky. Like just going off on someone and no one wants to see that.”

“Er I find that hard to believe but okay.” Louis bit down on his smile as he nodded slowly once. He pointed his half-eaten bagel towards Liam. “And I will be giving him another chance, just this once, at your insistence. But if he fucks it up, I am going to be very irritated with him. I don’t deal well with anger, really.”

“Alright,” Liam said cheerily, brushing off the crumbs on his shirt. His fingers got caught in the chain, and in his haste to free them he did something that made the chain fly up and hit his nose. Louis laughed at the absurdity of it, having had expected something to wrong with the chain sometime. He had eyed the gold chain with distrust from a while now. It wasn’t bad or anything but on top of that outfit, it stuck out. Plus it was way too big and thing and somehow, hilarious. Niall and Louis had already made fun of it twice by now. Hence Liam’s eyes snapped up quickly, narrowed. “And do not talk bad about the chain.”

“Not planning to,” Louis sang, clearly lying as he laughed. He had a few jokes up his sleeve, he couldn’t lie but he was saving up on them to use later on. Right now he was going to ruminate over Liam’s words. He was willing to give his roommate another chance, of course but he rather not mess it up.

Soon after, Liam and Niall left. Liam saying he felt icky and was going to take a shower while Niall claimed he needed more sleep. So Louis was left alone, staring curiously at the pink bed on the opposite side and wondering. Just wondering who this weird guy he was stuck with was and about his personality. Everything about him had seemed kind, before he opened his mouth. And Liam agreed with him on it being a minor miscommunication. So why did he act like a dick? Louis sighed, not wanting to go there as he shook his head and stood up. He pulled out the box he had shoved underneath his bed last night. It had been a last minute decision to sweep everything into the box ‘just in case’, whether or not he would need it. He pulled out the rolled up posters, flattening them out with his hand and smiling at them. He had brought along with him quite a few, which included two of David Beckham, one of Ronaldo and the rest of musical bands he liked. There were eight in total, and he wasn’t sure all of them would look good together on the wall. So he kept aside one of Becks’ and the other of Oasis.

Louis placed his hands on his hips as he appraised the bed and then looking up at the wall. He sighed and picked up the Oasis poster. He lightly climbed onto the bed, steadying himself when the mattress dipped under his weight. He held his position for a few more seconds until he took another step forward, wincing when the bed creaked worryingly under his weight. He held the poster up high on the wall with one hand while he somehow managed to cut out the tape to stick it. He about taping the third side when the door behind him opened followed by the telltale sound of heeled boots entering and the door being shut quietly behind him. Louis didn’t turn, humming in a carefree manner when he could feel eyes focused on his back. He didn’t even turn when the strong smell of cologne invaded his senses, and well, it might not be such a bad smell. He knew who it was without looking back and didn’t feel like facing him just yet.

He heard the sound of someone clearing their throat, clearing calling for Louis’ attention but he didn’t turn. He kept humming under his breath as he cut out the last piece of tape and slapped it on his poster. He placed his hands on his hips as he examined his work and only after did he turn. His roommate was standing by his side of the bed, as expected, staring at him. His long hair was tied up in a bun, a few tendrils escaping and curling around his ears. He was wearing a long coat this time, wrapped around his body so close that his shirt couldn’t be seen. It was strange, this whole black coat thing but it also looked good on him. Objectively.

In a show of residual annoyance, Louis crossed his arms over his chest and raised his eyebrows at his roommate. The boy in question kept looking back at him, green eyes filled with guilt. And Louis waited, knowing this was it. This was the moment his roommate would apologies and show he was a good person after all. He could see the boy’s lips parting but then his eyes flitted to somewhere over Louis’ shoulder and landed on the poster, possibly. He frowned suddenly, lips pressing into a thin line, swallowing down everything he was about to say and replaced by frustration which etched on his face. He closed his eyes before throwing his head back in a groan.

“Not Oasis of all bands,” he whined as he face twisted with repulsion. And just like that, all thoughts of forgiveness and open mindedness flew out the window and irritation settled in again. How very dare he! Louis wasn’t as passionate if he was being honest but he didn’t like it when this pretentious snob whined about it. Or was about to. So when this guy stumbled in just to insult something else Louis loved, he kinda lost it.

“Uh what?” he asked, voice cold and the question being rhetoric. His roommate frowned as he looked back at him with an unknown expression swimming in his eyes. It was confusing Louis a little, the behavior of this guy but it irritated him more.

“I don’t like Oasis because of Liam,” he said slowly, casually throwing the name around as if they were best pals or something. Louis’ eyebrows rose higher, daring him to go on. His roommate seemed unaware of the anger directed at him. He was looking at his feet, shuffling side to side as he rubbed the back of his neck. His other hand flailed around. “I met him a year ago at this event and he was a dick to me for no reason. So I hate him now, is all.”

“Well stranger,” Louis started coldly, making his roommate’s eyes snap up at him in surprise mingled with a little bit of guilt. Louis jump off his bed in an impulsive decision, holding himself gracefully as he landed and walked closer. He could see his roommate run his fingers through his hair in frustration, his fingers being void of rings this time. “You’ve been nothing but rude to me from the moment we met so. Given that, I should hate you too. So where’s my apology?”

“I uh,” he started, blinking quickly and looking nervous. Louis took another step closer, mimicking their position from the day before. Just this time, the other guy held his ground even if he fumbled for words. He shoulders were hunched, body stiff and he frowned. “I’m not apologizing.”

Louis narrowed his eyes at him, hands on his hips as he tilted his head to a side. His roommate looked away for a few seconds, pulling his lip between his teeth. He waited but the curly haired boy didn’t give him anything, just turned his nose up and walked to his bed. He lifted his duffle to his bed, unzipping it and pulling out his clothes. They were neatly folded before and he laid them gently. Louis stood there looking like a fool in the middle of the room as he watched his roommate steadily ignore his presence. He huffed, stomping his foot before trudging back to his own bed.

He roommate didn’t look his way again as he sorted through his clothes and placed them in his closet. Louis abandoned the rest of his plans for the morning, focusing instead of staring down roommate and making him break. It worked to a limit and he felt smug every stumble the guy did. When their eyes did meet for a few seconds, Louis would glare back and the other would look away quickly.

After a while Louis got bored. So he pulled out the other two Oasis posters he had brought along completely unintentionally. Giving his roommate a pointed look, Louis made sure he was watching as he put up the said posters. One of them had Liam Gallagher’s face up close, looking creepy and it was why he had never ever used it. But right now, it was worth it despite everything. His roommate’s face scrunched up in disgust as he eyes the posters, looking at Louis for a few seconds before he looked away again. If he had to deal with Liam Gallagher’s face just to spite his rude roommate who hated him, so be it.

His roommate left at two in the afternoon and Louis kept staring at him until he went out. He closed his eyes for a few minutes after, resting them before he changed his clothes and went knocking on Niall’s door. So the rest of the day was spent roaming around campus with his two new friends. Louis didn’t catch a glimpse of his long haired roommate around, thankfully. He only saw him when he went back to his room and found the boy curled up on his bed, fast asleep. His hair was splayed around him like a halo, arms wrapped around himself. It looked cute, Louis allowed himself to think before he looked away.

**

The next morning had Louis waking up with the sky dark outside. There was slow, sleepy music playing somewhere, and as the fog in his head cleared he realized it was from his own room. He was lying on his side he realized, eyes fluttering and all traces of sleep were slowing wiping away. He opened his eyes finally and was graced with the sight of someone’s ass pushing back to his face. He let out a yelp, scrambling away so that his back was flattened to the wall behind him, and away from the said ass. His heart was thudding loudly in his chest due to the unexpected sight, brain waking up suddenly. His eyes trailed upwards, finding the torso of his roommate bent, and his ass still immovably in his eye line.

“Get your fucking ass away from my face,” he shrieked, making the other guy turn his head. He was smirking as he looked back, eyes twinkling with mischief as he chuckled and looked away. Louis, in his heart, knew it was revenge for those posters he had put up. He did not like revenges.

“Be quiet. I just need to hold this pose for another few...”  And then he never finished, letting the sentence hang in the air. He was still bent down, his hands touching his toes and eyes closed. Louis huffed but his roommate didn’t shift. He counted to five in his head, glaring at the other boy, and that's how long it took for him to straighten up and move his butt away. Finally, Louis thought as his posture relaxed. His heart was calming into a steady pace, eyes drooping close again but sleep was long gone. Without wanting to, Louis found himself watching the guy stretch from side to side, his back still to him. He was wearing skin tight, pink leopard printed yoga pants paired with a thin white shirt. His hair was up in a bun again, while a small ponytail was holding up the front hair that tended to escape. The sleepy music was still playing, getting on Louis’ nerves. A minute or so passed that they both kept quiet, until his roommate turned to properly face Louis. He tilted his head to a side, a cocky grin playing on his lips. “And good morning to you too.”

Louis had shifted to the middle of the bed at that pointing, pushing himself up on one arm and resting his head on his palm. He frowned at this guy, who seemed way too cheerful for the early hour. Louis was not pleased, not appreciating being woken up so early for no cause. And especially not by this weird flower boy who he did not like. “It isn’t a good morning for me, thanks to you. And I do not like waking up at... at –”

“Six in the morning?” he supplied, eyebrows raised minimally in amusement. He started chuckling when Louis gasped, leaning to his side to look at the still dark sky outside.

“Is it only six?” Louis croaked, throat as dry as sandpaper. He gulped, sitting up suddenly and taking quick strides towards the window to see outside. It told him nothing, except that the sky was getting lighter and that the trees outside were still green. His sleepy brain had decided he wanted to walk, and now he felt a little stupid standing there. But he kept his head held high as he looked at his roommate with narrowed eyes. “Mate, I don’t think even the birds are up yet.”

“Actually if you’re really quiet you can hear their chirps,” he said in an overly sweet tone and giving him a tight-lipped grin. He bent down to move the yoga mat he had been standing on more to his side of the room. Louis’ mood turned sour, knowing that his roommate had did it all on purpose just to wake him up and he didn’t appreciate it.

Louis watched him stand atop the mat again, and went into another pose. He didn’t understand what he was doing, but one of his foot was held up in an almost swan like position. He was stood on the other foot, shaking. His lips twitched as he feared a fall, hands steadying his balance. Louis found it hard to hold back his smile as he stomped back to his bed.

“Well I might have been able to hear the chirps, if it wasn’t blocked out by this music. Which, by the way, is awful.” Louis dropped down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling and listening to the said music and his roommate’s quiet laughter mingled with it. The music grew on him soon, fingers tapping along, hidden from sight. Despite that, he grew steadily irritated. All he had wanted was to sleep in till late, since he would have early mornings once college started. But of course the guy he was stuck with wouldn’t let him have it. “And what are you doing anyway?”

“Yoga,” he replied, sounding out of breath. From the corner of his eyes, Louis could see him stretching into a different pose. He had stopped trying to figure out what he was doing a few minutes back, content with staring at the ceiling. “You should do it too, with me. Early morning yoga helps in keeping you fit and flexible. I always feel refreshed, that's for sure. After this I’m going for a jog so want to join me?”

Louis’ eyes, which had been drooping before, flew open in surprise. He stared at his roommate, waiting for the punchline. None came. Was he... all right? He was asking for Louis to come with him on an early morning jog? After he had rudely awakened him and pissed him off? Was he serious? Louis kept staring at his roommate, trying to figure him out. He had sounded like a walking advert, and now his face was open and genuine. He completely baffled him, really, so Louis snorted and looked away. “Thanks but I’ll pass. So why don’t you do this outside then?”

“Outside?” he asked, snorting. “Oh no it’s too early for outside.”

“It’s too early for inside as well,” he grunted. It almost felt like banter to him, not as rude as he’d like to be. Who knew why, but his irritation kept fading away when he saw his roommate look amused and sarcastic. It would’ve been nice to banter with him, if he was friendly that is. But he wasn’t friendly, and neither was Louis trying to be. “And I need my sleep so can you not?”

“Well don’t be so lazy, darling.”

“Well don’t be so pretentious,” he snapped, feeling the irritation flare up just like that again. And to think he was beginning to warm up to him. As an afterthought, he purred ‘darling’ with as much dryness as he could muster. He resolutely stared at the ceiling while he did say.

“You keep saying that word...” he started before he cut himself off. He sounded hurt, and it made Louis’ heart pang as he looked back and found him pouting.

“Yeah because that's what I think when I look at you.” His roommate was still pouting, and it made him... feel things so he looked away. “So when do you finish this... yoga routine?”

“Fifteen more minutes,” he chirped, all of the hurt wiped from his voice. And just like that he sprung back into stretching. Louis looked at him from the corner of his eyes, watching as he dropped down to the floor on all fours and lifted his bum in the air. Towards Louis.

He groaned, throwing an arm over his face. “Can’t you push your ass to a side I’m not on?”

“Let me tell you people love my ass,” he said breathily, before breaking into giggles. Giggles, yeah.

“Well I’m not that fond,” he muttered, knowing it was loud enough to be heard. He was answered with a quiet laugh.

He turned his ass away eventually. The music shut off soon after, right when Louis was on the brink of sleep. He heard the sound of footsteps leading away before the door shut softly. And then it was quiet again.

**

Louis woke up a few hours later, still groggy and irritable. The sun had risen far up, and Louis’ sleep was broken this time by a series of loud laughs. Louis frowned, eyes still closed as he flipped onto his stomach and tried to fall back asleep again. No such luck, he thought, reluctantly flipped onto his back again. He could make out Niall’s laugh now, loud and carefree. He cracked an eye open to find that indeed it was Niall in his room again, just sitting on the other bed this time. He mentally groaned, keeping his eyes shut for a few more minutes until the laughs got the best of him.

Louis sat up, rubbing his eyes and looking at the other side. Niall was sitting on the pink bed, feet crossed. He was wearing clothes from last night and was currently mid laugh, eyes squinted from the force of it. Sitting across from him was Louis’ new roommate, wearing a bright yellow shirt which hurt Louis’ eyes. His hair looked damp, left down to his shoulder and he smiled as he brushed away the occasional loose strand. He was in the middle of saying something, arms waving mid air when Niall glanced over to Louis’ side.

“Lou you’re awake,” he exclaimed, giving a little cheer and cutting the other boy off mid sentence. As Niall bounded towards Louis, he noticed his roommate was looking over as well, grinning. He had dimples forming on his cheeks and before Louis could process it, Niall was wrapping him in a tight hug. Niall’s happiness was infectious, temporarily cheering him. But his morning irritation was making its way up when he looked at the green-eyed boy over Niall’s shoulder.

“Yeah was woken up again,” he replied, giving a pointed look over to his roommate as Niall broke away.

“Good morning, Lou,” his roommate said, his words missing the sarcasm from earlier. His smile was genuine, waving at him. He tried not to find it cute and failed, giving him a flat grin in return. He felt even more confused by the guy, and they only had three proper conversations yet and all were arguments. Louis looked away quickly, trying not to feel guilty when his roommate’s face fell when his greeting wasn’t returned.

The guy hadn’t been exactly polite to Louis, but he still felt guilty about ignoring. So he looked back, shooting a short ‘morning’ to him before he looked at Niall. “So Niall, you’re here again.”

“Yup,” he chirped, as he shuffled in beside Louis on the bed. He was blissfully unaware of the tension between the other two in the room, or so it seemed to Louis. “I popped in to see if you were awake, so we could catch breakfast again. But you were asleep, so when Harry here opened the door, he invited me in. He’s a really funny guy, you know? Good lad.”

“Uh huh,” Louis muttered, rolling his eyes before he looked over at his roommate. He was looking at them with a sullen expression, which quickly brightened up when he felt Louis’ eyes on him. Finally a name to the face, Louis thought. Harry, what a normal name. “I didn’t find him funny in the least but okay. If you say so, Ni. And you’re Harry?”

He nodded.

Good lad, Niall had called him which Louis didn’t see in the least. They didn’t have one pleasant conversation, except for the cheery greeting which Louis turned down icily. From the looks of it, he might assume this Harry had a problem with Louis himself, which explained the sullen look from before. In that case, Louis had a problem with him too, especially due to being woken up twice before nine today, and by him. He didn’t like being woken up.

Before Louis, who had been planning a witty but rude comment, could say anything, the door opened. Liam stepped in, looking sheepish before he smiled at Harry. Neither of them looked surprised when they saw each other, in fact it looked familiar. Louis watched them, frowning at Harry’s grin as he patted the space beside him. Liam gave Louis a guilty look before he sat beside Harry nevertheless.

“Hey man,” he said to the long haired boy, getting a bright smile in return. “How are you?”

“I’m good. So finally we’re going for that breakfast huh,” he teased, making Liam laugh and ruffle Harry’s hair in return. There was an inside joke there, he could feel it.

Louis’ eyes were now narrowed as he continued watching them, resentment filling up his heart. It seemed like this guy was nice to everyone that was not Louis, as if he had done something offending. He racked through his brain, trying to remember but came up with nothing that he could have done wrong. He was probably playing with Louis, pretending to be nice with others while Louis looked like a fool for complaining. It wouldn’t be beneath him, he concluded as he pressed his lips together.

Louis abruptly stood, three pairs of eyes instantly turning towards him. He felt the scrutiny and confusion from them, but he ignored it. He was feeling confused and a little angry, and as he had told Liam yesterday, he didn’t deal well with anger. He picked up his toiletry bag and walked out of the room, leaving silence in his wake. He splashed his face with water, wiping it off with the bottom of his shirt. He then brushed his teeth, took a piss before going back in. Hushed conversations halted when he walked back in, eyes following his movements.

“So shall we go for breakfast?” he asked, adding false cheer to his voice and face. No one responded so Louis clapped his hands together, eyebrows rising expectantly. That made them chime in with their assents, getting up quickly.

**

It turned out that they gelled very well together as a group, if not for the fact that Harry and Louis gave each other a cold shoulder. Louis was freezing him out while Harry didn’t make more efforts after the one in the room, so just like that, they were ignoring each other. If Niall and Liam noticed the tension, they didn’t let it show, dragging them both in individual conversations. During dinner they fell into a pattern, where Harry and Louis talked over each other while glaring and the other two sighed in resignation.

The next day Niall convinced them all to go to a frat party, which he claimed was where everybody would be.

“This is where we have to be tonight lads,” he proclaimed, arms spreading wide and hitting Louis on the nose. Louis yelped, rubbing his nose as he glared at his friend. “Sorry Lou, totally unintentional. But my point stands. It will be fun.”

“I doubt it,” Louis muttered, sniffing. He could see Harry giving him a look, eyebrows furrowed together. And for some reason, Louis was staring back.

“Come on Lou,” Niall pleaded, clutching his arm and widening his eyes. He pressed his lips into a pout, and Louis had to say it was working a little. “I’ll even help you find someone, get laid.”

“I’m...” he started, not knowing how to finish. Louis never planned to come out so early in their friendship, knowing from previous experiences that people do not handle ‘asexuality’ well. They joked and teased, which wasn’t in a supportive way and Louis would hate to break their friendship so soon. Not that he didn’t trust Niall and Liam, he did. He was a bit doubtful about Harry but still. He didn’t want to out himself right now, so he modified his wordings. “I have to wake up early tomorrow.”

Niall snorted, shaking his head. “That’s not an excuse.”

“It so is!” Louis protested, pouting unintentionally. Niall laughed, shaking his head and patting his back lightly.

“Don’t worry, I’ll find you someone,” he said before turning to Harry. The latter was watching Louis with a strange look, eyebrows still drawn but expression a little different. He looked away quickly and Louis found himself getting more confused as he slumped in his seat.

A few hours later, Louis found himself reluctantly taking a shower and washing his hair. He slipped back into the clothes he had worn before. Then he took his sweet time shaving, nodding through the mirror to the guys who passed by. It was fairly uneventful as he walked back to his room, rubbing his jaw and carrying his bag in the other hand. He pushed the door open, finding Harry standing with is back to him. He was combing through his hair, shaking his hips to the music he hummed. Louis snorted unintentionally, catching Harry’s attention. Harry turned around with a flourish, hair flying behind him beautifully. His face was void of expression, as he watched Louis hurriedly walk towards his bed.

As Louis settled on his bed, debating on what he should be wearing, he could see Harry from the corner of his eyes. Harry had turned his back to him again as he took his shirt off without a care in the world that someone else was in the same room. He whistled under his breath as he reached for the zipper of his jeans.

“Are you going to undress right in front of me?” Louis squeaked, slapping his hand over his eyes as quickly as he could. He could hear a light chuckle from the other side before the sound of a zipper being pulled down. Louis squeezed his eyes, as if it would erase the image he had caught of Harry. He had known he was fit, with tattoos on his arms, but he had seen just how fit he was. He had tattoos smattered down his arm with a few on his torso. He hadn’t stared at him long enough, just to take in the large butterfly on his stomach and knew it was a pun. As a fellow tattoo enthusiast, he would have loved to know more. But then it was Harry, of all people so. “Have you no shame, Harold?”

“Not my name,” he sang, before the flapping sound of his shirt was heard. Louis could assume he was putting his shirt on and he was proven right when his next words were muffled. “I go to the gym, I do yoga and I know I have a great body. So what do I have to be ashamed of?”

“Show off,” Louis grumbled under his breath, loud enough to be heard. Harry laughed again, as Louis had expected him to. He knew what Louis wanted him to be ashamed of, but had purposefully given a different answer. Louis huffed, keeping his eyes still close but dropping his hand. He fiddled with the ends of his shirt before taking to running his fingers through his hair, which had dried a little. He huffed loudly, after another minute of Harry humming some tune. “And do tell me when you’re dressed.”

“I am done, Louis,” he answered, voice falsely sweet and almost mocking. Louis huffed again, standing up to rummage through his bag. His hands brushed against a white t-shirt, which he pulled out and paired it with black jeans. He decided against fancy wear, which without looking, Louis knew Harry was wearing. He hadn’t looked back at him.

“And now I need you to turn around, Harold,” he instructed. Harold, which was in fact not Harry’s name, annoyed him when called so Louis called him it. He could hear an amused laugh, which seemed to be what Harry did a lot of. “I’m serious.”

“What, are you like shy?”

“No,” Louis scoffed, as if the mere conclusion was ridiculous. Sure he was a little self-conscious, but he was far from shy. Somewhere in his head he did think Harry would judge his slightly pudgy tummy, since he hadn’t been the politest so far. But that wasn’t the reason either. “I just don’t undress in front of strangers.”

It wasn’t a lie really, since he had only ever undressed in front of three people. One of them was his mother, and that was when he was little.

Harry scoffed. “Somehow I doubt that,” he muttered under his breath before going silent. Louis bit his lip, opting not to give in. He took a deep breath instead, spewing curses in his head. He trusted Harry to have turned as he took off his clothes and threw them on his bed. He pulled on the new clothes, the shirt being a little looser over his shoulders but it would do. Once he had pressed down the creases, he turned, finding Harry dutifully turned away from him. Louis appreciated that, biting down on his smile before he cleared his throat.

Harry, having got the hint, turned around with a small smile, which soon froze. Louis frowned questioningly before he looked down and got it. Harry was wearing a white t-shirt and black skinnies, the same get up as Louis’. He groaned while Harry smirked, giving Louis another pointed onceover. “Stealing my look now, are we?”

“I didn’t know you had a white shirt trademarked, Curly,” Louis snapped, fists clenching to his sides. He took to pulling on his shirt, debating whether or not to change. While Harry sat on his bed, leaning back on his arms as he found amusement in Louis’ actions. Louis decided he’d keep the shirt. “Besides, I didn’t know what you were wearing.”

“Didn’t you see what I was wearing when you checked on me?” he asked, eyebrows furrowed. An accusing expression took over his face, as his fingers absently pulled on his lower lip.

“I trusted you to have turned,” he admitted quietly, cheeks coloring, rubbing his toe on the floor. On second thoughts, he should have checked before. What if Harry hadn’t turned, that would’ve been stupid of him. And now he had gone ahead and embarrassingly revealed that he trusted his roommate. Whom he didn’t like at all. Great.

Harry grew quiet at the revelation, eyes filling with an unreadable expression. Louis tried to figure it out and failed, so he started messing with his hair. It was still damp so he patted his fringe down. Harry stood up abruptly, fists clenched beside him. “You know what Louis, I’ve got an idea.”

Saying so he walked briskly towards his closet, which Louis could see was neatly arranged. His clothes were folded and laid on top of one another, which sadly couldn’t be said for his own clothes. They were still stuffed messily in his bag. He felt a little envious, as he watched his roommate sift through his clothes, pulling something out before the door shut. Louis saw a black mesh scarf in his hands, which he wound around his neck twice and let the loose ends fall. The flattened the ends on his chest, tilting his head to a side when he looked up. “And now we look different. See.”

“I fail to see a difference,” Louis shot back. His cocked his hips to a side, crossing his arms over his chest and stared. It was barely a difference, with the thin scarf barely distinguishing the similarity of their outfits.

“Well now I look fancier than you.” He splayed his fingers over his chest, smirking at him. Louis scoff, shaking his head in annoyance and a little bit of contempt. He couldn’t believe the guy really, but at the same time, he did look a little bit fancy. It wasn’t the scarf, but his hair if he was being honest.

Louis fished his jean jacket out, throwing it on and pulling it close. He then squirted some gel into his hair, pushing it up in a messy quiff he had perfected long ago. All the while he looked Harry in the eyes and hoping he wasn’t making a fool of himself. Harry was staring back with a bemused expression with the corner of lips turned down. “Well now I look hotter than you.”

“You do,” he said weakly before both their eyes widened with surprise. Harry immediately looked away, running his fingers through his hair and cleared his throat. “I uh, I mean you don’t. I do.”

“Whatever you say, Mr. I’m-so-posh.”

“Yeah well at least I wash my hair every day, not just when I want to go out.”

“Oh that's rich coming from you, who thinks wrapping an expensive scarf on his basic clothes makes him...”

“That has nothing to do with –”

They were interrupted by loud raps on the door, making them swallow their words. Niall’s head peeked in, as he held his hand over his eyes. It was just a pretence, since he could see them through his fingers. “Everyone decent here?”

“If you would have come in seven minutes ago, you would have caught a show from Harold over here,” he remarked, nodding his chin towards Harry. His face was twisted in a scowl, hands on his hips. “He loves putting on a show.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he spat, jaw clenching.

Louis glared back equally as intense. “So you can make a joke about my promiscuity but I can’t? Real mature there Harry, and yes I heard it before.”

Harry took quick steps so in under a second he was standing dangerously close to Louis. He was towering over him, so close that Louis could feel his warm breath. The latter glared back, lifting himself up on his tiptoes so he could look into his eyes. “You know what –”

“Guys it’s time to go,” Niall said loudly, interrupting them again. His eyes were wide and anxious as he grabbed Louis by the collar of his jacket and dragged him out the door. Louis protested, while shooting daggers at Harry, who was following them. His eyes were so wide apart on his face, it wasn’t scary in the least. Louis would love to comment on the same, but refrained. He managed to free himself from Niall’s grip eventually, straightening the lapels while grumbling the rest of the way.

**

“So what's your type, Louis?” Niall asked, waggling his eyebrows as he handed Louis a red solo cup. He had chosen to stay by one corner of the room while his friend brought back his drink. Louis rolled his eyes as he accepted the cup, leaning back against the wall again. Niall slid in beside him while Harry walked past Louis to stand on the other side of Niall. Their arms brushed as he passed, both of them frowning at each other until Louis looked forward.

When they had walked in, Louis felt he would deafen from the noise inside. He had said the same to Liam, who laughed and walked in a different direction as theirs. He was never seen by them, and granted it had only been twenty minutes since but worry was nagging at the back of Louis’ head. But that was started to dissipate, as he got used to the noise level after having his second drink and currently being on his third. He took a big gulp from his cup, wincing as it went down and feeling woozier than he had before.

“Come on, Lou there’s gotta be something,” Niall prodded. He threw his free arm around Louis’ shoulder, other waving wildly and making the liquid slosh inside the cup. “Look at all these people. Someone might be what you like.”

“I have no type,” he maintained, as he had the previous two times. It was the truth, at least for him. According to Louis, having a type meant feeling strong attraction towards someone due to any repetitive feature, of either their personality or physical trait. And since he never felt attraction in the first place, it was impossible that he had a type. There were fleeting fascinations sometimes, but the flames extinguished before they were set aflame. Being a homoromantic ace, he never felt sexual attraction and his aesthetic attraction never followed a pattern as well.

He swept his eyes over the crowd nevertheless, his disinterest clear when no one stood out. In fact, he had no intention of getting laid and the same couldn’t be said for literally anyone else. So Niall was up on a wild goose chase there.

“Everyone has a type,” Niall insisted as he had twice before, pulling Louis close to him. Louis turned his head towards his friend, intent to give him a blank look but caught Harry’s eyes instead. Harry had been weird the whole time, which Louis steadfast tried to ignore. Even now his eyes were fixed on Louis’ face as he sipped out of his cup. His eyes were filled with a strange expression and all it did was make Louis unsettled. He blinked furiously as he broke the gaze and looked away. “Tell me about your exes.”

“Let’s see there was Hannah, my first girlfriend,” Louis described, eyebrows rising of their own accord. “She was short, curvy with long blonde hair.”

Hannah had been the first girl to ask Louis out when they were sixteen, and he had agreed. She was nice and they proceeded to date for a year before Louis had realized he still liked her as a friend. She had loved him, while he obviously did not and confessed the same. Their breakup was amicable, with tears on her side and an apologetic smile on Louis’. It was the time he had realized he wasn’t straight.

“Alright so that girl over...”

“And then I realized I was gay,” Louis let out, interrupting his friend. Niall cut his sentence short, frowning in confusion before he looked at Louis with an unimpressed look. Louis couldn’t hold in his amusement, breaking out in giggles partly fuelled by the alcohol. He caught Harry’s eyes again, watching his lip twitch up. But his gaze was still intense, as if trying to size Louis up with a serial killer smirk. It was disconcerting, cutting short his laughter. He cleared his throat, looking away from his roommate yet again. “See, even I can do dramatic pauses which irk others.”

“Bastard,” he huffed, his blue eyes narrowed with accusations. “Then tell me about your ex boyfriend, if you had one that is.”

A small smile tugged on Louis’ face as he tilted his head to a side. And since his eyes were wandering over to the crowd, he caught some girl’s attention, who fluttered her eyes seductively. The corner of Louis’ lips twitched down as he moved on from her, sighing internally. “His name was Nico. He was this tall, lean guy and funny as hell. He had beautiful green eyes, which smiled as he spoke. And he was really beautiful.”

Nico was beautiful, in an ethereal, model-ish sort of way. He had been the one to ask Louis out too, which made everyone envious of him since they all wanted the same thing. Louis felt lucky to date him, even if in constant wonder of why he did. And despite Louis’ obvious aesthetic attraction to him, he never felt any romantic affiliation. He didn’t feel the need for sex and neither did he enjoy when they did have. They broke up in April, with Louis giving some stupid excuse about school ending and not wanting to get stuck in long distance relationships. Truth was that Louis had realized he wasn’t just gay either but asexual. He felt no sexual attraction towards either sex, even if he leaned towards male. He had yet to feel any romantic attraction as well.

He grew comfortable in his ‘asexual’ label, revealing it to his mother quickly and his closest friends slowly. His mother and one of his friends took it well while others laughed, and he subsequently broke ties with the most of the latter. He still felt happy. Happy with not being expected to put out on dates which he’d stupidly agree to. He felt just a little sad he didn’t go on romantic dates anymore but it wasn’t important.

“Is there some catch again?” Niall asked knowingly. His eyes were narrowed, lips turned down and it was amusing. Behind him though, Harry was sending Louis another peculiar look. It was as if he was expecting Louis to understand a language his eyes spoke but Louis’ didn’t. Harry was strange, he decided, since whoever expected their non-friend to read their minds. Louis realized he was trying to convey the same with his eyes and sighed, internally of course.

Louis focused his eyes on Niall this time, his confusion changing into amusement. “Oh yeah. He still wasn’t my type, since I broke up with him ‘cause I didn’t like him that way.”

“What is ‘that way’...” he started before he cut himself off suddenly. He shook his head slightly with a resigned look as he dropped his arm off Louis’ shoulder. He threw back the rest of his drink, not even wincing at it. He raised his hands in surrendering motion. “You know what, I’ll let you be. Go on find someone you like on your own, or don’t. I don’t even care anymore. Whom I care about is Harry, who I will help now. Harry, babe, what's your type?”

“Uh um me?” he stammered, looking startled at being addressed. Most of his face was blocked by Niall’s head but Louis could still make out his wide eyes. He was looking at Louis again, begging him to understand it and he did. Fear. Harry was scared but of what? “I’m pretty sure I like boys?”

Niall gave out a harsh laugh, shaking his head slowly. He waggled an accusing finger at Harry, who visibly gulped. “No no. Don’t you do that to me as well. Tell me your type.”

Harry exchanged another wide-eyed glance with Louis. His eyes were pleading and Louis sighed outwardly this time. From the goodness of his heart, or due to understanding his position, Louis decided to intervene. He slapped Niall’s back, making yelp as his knees buckled. He turned to face Louis again, eyes narrowed. “Come on Neil. Why don’t you find someone for yourself now? I’m sure Harold here has already picked someone out in the crowd. Why do you think he’s hesitating?”

“Eh well.” Niall shrugged, barely looking bothered anymore. He tapped his empty cup with his finger and nodded his head to a side. “Well suit yourselves. I’m going to get me some drinks and then disappear. You two enjoy each other’s company.”

Louis was sure the last part had both sarcastic and suggestive intonations. But he couldn’t be too sure since Niall disappeared with a cackle of laughter. Louis looked for him, as he realized he indeed was left in Harry’s company. The two of them were awkwardly standing in the corner, neither bothering to look at one another. The hair on his nape rose with trepidation, and he was about to excuse himself when Harry’s hand came to rest on his shoulder. The next moment Harry was leaning in really close, his breath fanning over Louis’ ears as he whispered. “That guy is totally your type.”

Louis followed the direction of his finger, finding a drunk, dancing guy with dark skin and short curly hair, on the other end. Louis frowned, a million questions rising as he turned, just to find his roommate missing. He let out a curse under his breath, his irritation from before returning as he finished the rest of his drink. It wasn’t fair that Harry confused him so much, going from hot to cold in a matter of minutes. Louis poured himself another glass and downed it one gulp, vision blurring slightly. He was pretty sure someone was puking in the corner while a couple was making out right beside him. It took the drunk girl from before advancing towards him to make him slip into the crowd and head towards the door.

The cool air sobered him quickly, his unsteady feet somehow taking him back to his dorm building. He felt woozy as he jabbed the key in the lock and let himself in. To his surprise, the room wasn’t dark like Louis had expected. The lights were on, and along with it was Harry, who stood in the middle of the room gawking at him. He was in his boxers and the shirt from before, towel held to his face. It took him a few minutes to unfreeze, the same it took for Louis to grumble under his breath and make way to his bed. Harry turned off the light suddenly and knocked into something on his way to his bed. Louis huffed as he stripped off his pants before falling onto his bed, not caring that his roommate could see him. They were left in silence, knowing the other was awake.

“Why did you leave early?” Harry grumbled in the dark. Louis could hear rustling, could make out his silhouette turned towards him. Louis turned onto his back, closing his eyes.

“I could ask you the same.”

Harry fell quiet after that and Louis was thankful for it.

**

Louis woke up in the same fashion as the day before – at the crack of dawn and twenty minutes before his alarm was set to go off.

He had a light headache, arm throbbing from when Harry’s leg had hit him, jolting him awake. He rubbed his arm, staring at the ceiling in part resignation and part anger. Actually, he was completely angry, stewing in the awful music Harry was playing once again. He couldn’t fall back asleep for the minutes he had now, thanks to his _dear friend Harry_. He scoffed, looking sideways to glare at the said boy. He shook his head before throwing off his sheets and sitting up.

“I’ve had enough,” he exclaimed loudly, startling the other boy. The next series of events were hilarious, how Harry turned at the sound and lost his balance in the process. He tripped over his own feet and fell flat on his stomach, groaning loudly. Louis’ lips twitched in amusement, feeling only a little guilty at the sight. He picked up the sweatpants he had thrown on the floor, glaring at the boy who was in the process of sitting up. He slipped on his bathroom slippers, still glaring. Harry’s eyes were rounded and accusing, his lips parting. But before he could get a word out, Louis was storming out, with one hand massaging his forehead. He ignored the presence of the boys in the communal, who didn’t pay him any lead. He found an empty shower stall and stepped in. Under the hot water, he could feel himself relax. As he washed his hair he couldn’t help but think of revenge. He had to find a way to get back at his roommate for ruining his sleep.

Throwing on his old, wet clothes he walked back to his dorm. It was empty, thankfully and he was only greeted with the face of Liam Gallagher, which he now realized was a terrible form of revenge. It was as if he was judging Louis for his wet shirt, which he had used to wipe his face due to the lack of towel. He turned his back to the poster, changing out of his clothes into fresh ones. His eyes fell on the small speakers on Harry’s desk, which was probably how he played his music.

A devilish smirk found its way onto Louis’ face, as a plan formed which would help him get back. He grabbed his phone, searching for shops nearby which would cater to his need and grinned.

And that was how Louis found himself being late to his very first lecture of the year.

**

When Louis returned his room again, his backpack was heavier. He had also worn it on the front, cradling the lump and giving everyone a wry smile as he passed by them.

The electronics store had been further away than what Louis had assumed. But he had found what he had been looking for – a small pair of Bluetooth speakers. They were smaller than what Harry owned, but the salesman had assured they were louder. He was aware he was raising suspicions on the way, but he was too anxious to care as he pushed the door open.

Harry was in, sitting on his bed and looking into his laptop. He did not look up at the sound of the door closing, although the corner of his lips did twitch. Louis took off his bag, sneaking up to his bed and carefully sliding it under. The sheets hid it from Harry’s view, which was nice. He stood up again, dusting off his knees when he saw Harry shooting him a curious look. Louis ignored his presence, flopping down on the bed and burying his head in his pillows.

There was tensed silence in the air, Louis’ heart hammering in his chest due to some reason. Harry didn’t look over at him again, which he only noticed since Louis currently was staring at him. He was wearing a sensible button down along with plaid trousers, a much tamer look that usual. His golden boots were replaced by black loafers, with rainbow colors on his side. If Louis hadn’t already heard his statement last night, his shoes would drive home the point that he was in fact queer.

Louis was on the verge of snoozing off, when the door banged open and Niall stood there in all his glory. He seemed puzzled by the lack of attention he got, before being pushed by Liam who barged in after him.

“So what did the two of you do last night?” he asked, poking Louis’ feet to be lift up. He quickly bent his feet, panic rising in his chest. He sat up in a flurry, seeing Liam shoot him a curious look from the corner of his eyes. Niall, though, was waggling his eyebrows suggestively, looking from Louis to Harry and back. Louis’ eyes darted to Harry instinctively, watching how wide his eyes had gone and the corner of his lip noticeably lower. The three other occupants were looking at Louis in question, making heat rise in his cheeks.

“I went home with someone,” Louis lied, looking into Niall’s eyes. Niall only raised a disbelieving eyebrow, which prompted Louis in giving him a smile so wide he was sure he looked crazed. His friend wasn’t buying it, his eyes still darting between Harry and Louis questioningly. Louis frowned, not understanding what he was trying to say there. “Really.”

“If you say so,” he replied winking, while turning to Liam. He was still stood by the door, being confused and toying with his chain. “We all know Liam hooked up with some frat boy he refuses to tell me the name of. Yeah Liam, we know don’t squawk. So Harry?”

In the minutes that all attention had been focused on Louis, Harry had somehow managed to quietly lie down on his bed. His bed sheets were pulled up, hiding him up to his eyes, which looked at them anxiously. Louis almost face palmed at this unsubtle mess of a person. “Didn’t see Louis at all.”

He shook his head erratically and Louis groaned, looking up at the ceiling and cursing his fate. And roommate. Speaking about roommates, what was wrong with him? If Niall had been suspicious before, Harry had egged him on into thinking something more. Liam was looking concerned along with confused.

Someone started laughing, and it wasn’t until three pairs of eyes were upon that Louis realized he was the one. He was laughing nervously, shoulders stiff and face pinched. He stopped when he saw Niall’s smirk, eyes twinkling.

“Whatever, you guys.” Niall clapped his hands together, standing up. “So we just came to ask you if y’all wanted to grab some lunch.”

Louis and Harry nodded simultaneously, standing up. Although in Harry’s case, he was still cocooned in his pink sheets and took them off sheepishly. Niall chuckled, grabbing a confused Liam outside while Louis groaned loudly.

“Did you have to give him ideas about what did not happen?” Louis questioned, hands on his hips. Harry, who was in the process of folding, frowned at him, bottom lip jutting out.

“What ideas?”

“Think about it, Harry, I’m sure you are a smart kid.”

“I don’t... oh. No. Will never happen with you.”

Louis laughed, amusement bubbling up. The look on Harry’s face was as if Louis would attempt to. Joke was on him since Louis didn’t have any interest in him, no matter how pretty he looked with flushed cheeks. “Same here, mate. You and I will never happen.”

Harry opened his mouth to say something, eyebrows drawing together before he swallowed it down. “Same.”

**

The next two days went by quickly, with Louis formulating his plan.

He had to take note of Harry’s schedule to execute it properly, so that's just what he did. Harry woke him up with his morning yoga routine, at the ass crack of dawn. Louis grumbled only a little, counting the hours until he avenged himself. He had a random arrangement of classes, after which the four of them caught lunch together. But Harry always ran off somewhere at eight, only returning after nine and then falling straight to bed. Louis noted all of it, writing it on a piece of paper. And he had his plan ready.

On the third night, Louis planted the two Bluetooth speakers under both their beds hidden away. He grinned at nothing, rubbing his hands together like a cartoon villain before switching off the lights.

Louis waited, and like clockwork Harry came in a little after nine. If he was surprised, Louis couldn’t tell but he watched as he walked to his bed. He stripped off his silk shirt, and pulling down a new one in the dark. Louis’ heart was thundering with excitement as he watched Harry lie down on his bed. It was quiet for two seconds before –

“What the fuck!” Harry shrieked, as the loud beats filled up the room. He ran to the switch on lights again, and the face he made was one of delight. His eyes were wide, hair falling over his face is a messy way. He looked from Louis to the poster on his wall and back, eyes narrowing as his chest heaved. The music played on, Noel’s voice singing ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ and that was the moment Harry burst. “Turn it down!”

“Why?” Louis asked, raising one eyebrow as he pushed himself up on his elbows. He was trying very hard to hold back his laugh, fingers subconsciously tapping to the beat.

“I need to sleep!”

“Well Harry, listening to music is good for you,” Louis sassed, smilingly sweetly as him. Harry’s face turned a shade of red, as the song ended and went back on repeat. Louis had created a playlist where the song would be played twenty eight times, or less if his phone ran out of battery. It would achieve in breaking Harry’s sleeping habit, just as he did to Louis’. It would be fair, even if irritating. He smirked at Harry before turning to his side and pretending to sleep.

He heard a frustrated huff, making him grin wider at the wall, before the lights switched off again. The song played twice again, the glee wearing off to be replaced with resignation in Louis’ heart. But he knew Harry was awake, from him twisting and turning in his bed. “Goodnight Harry.”

“Fuck you.”

**

Louis eventually fell asleep, soothing to beats of the Oasis song. But it was as if Harry woke up extra early the next day, eyes puffy as he jolted Louis awake.

“Can you seriously not and just let me sleep?” Louis whined, shoving a pillow over his head. “Do I have to ask you to lie for you to slip down your sheets?”

Harry made a sound in the back of his throat, making Louis grin. “You’re being grumpy again. Do I have to make you lie so that you smile like a mad man?”

“Fuck you.”

“Don’t steal my line!”

**

Louis should say that he was surprised by the orange light which flashed in his face when he returned to his dorm after dinner. But it was actually the smell that hit him first, making him nauseated the minute the door opened. He sighed as he closed the door before he tentatively cast a look at the room. The lights were off, but the walls were lit with an orange glow and shadows. There were candles. Everywhere on the floor and the smell... it was making Louis scrunch up his nose.

“Are we having a séance?” he spat, ruffling the front of his fringe. Louis flattened himself to the door, eyeing the candles suspiciously. Harry, who had been crouching, looked up and held up a candle under his face. He looked sinister, the candle casting weird shadows along with the half smirk he bore. It was unsettling, and Louis didn’t know what he was up to. All he knew was that candles were a fire hazard and staunchly against the rules. “Should I call the RA on you?”

“And oh look there’s the evil spirit I summoned,” Harry exclaimed, laying down the candle and clapping his hands with false cheer. Louis rolled his eyes as he watched Harry stand up straight, and scan the room and smile. His hair was in a bun again and he was wearing what looked like silk pajamas. Louis didn’t know whether to laugh or scream at the picture he painted in that. “Also they are flameless, so they won’t burn the room down.”

Louis frowned, bent to examine a candle and found indeed that it was LED. It also emitted a sickly sweet smell, which made him gag and keep it back quickly. He heard Harry chuckle, and his frown deepened as he dodged the candles and walked towards the bed. There were candles purposefully lining his bed, so that if he were to wake up quickly, he’d step on them. “And what is that smell?”

“Fresh cut roses.”

“Well it’s nasty, despite the name,” he remarked as he climbed under his sheets. Harry was still rooted to his spot, hands now on his lips as he cast Louis a victorious, smug look. “So they have to go.”

“They’re spiritual, Louis,” he explained slowly, tone condescending. Louis glared at him, but he paid it no heed as he slowly untied his hair. He combed through his hair with his fingers, eyes closed as he hummed. He lay down on his bed, still smiling as he looked at Louis. He felt angry at this angelic looking troll who was intent on ruining Louis’ life. It had been three days of the late night music and Louis had been considering stopping it but not now. Not when Harry had tried to one up on him and lit them both in a creepy, orange glow. “And they help me sleep better.”

“They don’t work for me, Curly,” he said through gritted through his teeth, watching Harry’s smirk widen.

“I don’t care... Straight-y.”

Louis snorted loudly, making his roommate’s eyebrows draw together. He was frowning, nose scrunched up in confusion and looking like an adorable kitten. He knew his comeback was poor once again, never the one to compare to Louis but this was just hilarious. Straight, and him. As if.

“What?” he asked, a whine evident in his voice.

“Oh I’m ace, Harry,” he said, winking. It was surprising it had taken him so long to sneak an asexual joke somewhere in his conversations, and of course Harry was the one who provided him with the perfect opportunity. He didn’t wait to see his reaction this time, turning over in his bed. He took out his phone, tapping a few times and the familiar beats filled up the room again. He heard a loud groan and sniggered. He had managed to snag the upper hand once again, even at the expense of his prized sleep. “Good night Harold.”

“Oh no not Oasis again goddamn it!”

**

Louis found himself irritated and unfocused at all hours, while ignoring Niall’s invitations to parties in favor of sleeping in. Harry wouldn’t be in the room mostly, sneaking off somewhere. Whenever they were both in the room, a candle lit music night would ensure, both of them waking up bleary eyed. A good side effect to that routine was that Harry did not do his early morning yoga. So at least one of Louis’ problems was eliminated.

“Don’t you think it is going too far?” Niall asked, sighing as he looked at his friend. Louis had purple bruises under his eyes due to his lack of sleep. He yawned every few minutes, and wanted nothing more than for Niall to leave. But instead he was given a pitiful look and a lecture, neither of them was what he wanted. He wanted to take a nap for at least fifteen minutes, after which he had to rush to another lecture. He was about to say the same to his friend when the door behind him opened.

Niall smiled and waved at Harry, while Louis scowled. Harry’s eyes were puffy, his ever-present glow wearing off from his lack of sleep. He was clumsier than ever, or at least that's what Niall had told him before. Louis looked at his hunched shoulders, his pink button down and sensible shoes and frowned. It was clearly affecting both of them a lot, so if he stopped Harry might too. He was about to suggest it when Harry spoke up and the plan dissolved.

“Why are you so messy,” he exclaimed, knocking aside Louis’ Vans, which had ended up near his bed. He cast Louis a scowl, eyeing the mess of clothes around his bed and his bags, overflowing with rumpled clothes. Louis squared his shoulders, looking at his clothes with love and at his roommate with anger. “Yesterday I almost tripped on your shoe.”

“Have you considered the fault of your chicken legs?”

“Have you considered not leaving your stuff around? Or picking them up?”

“Maybe you should do it for me,” he spat. Niall’s hand grabbed his shoulder, stopping him from standing up. He was casting the two of them a wary look and Louis took a deep breath to calm himself. He closed his eyes, focusing on his breath before he looked at his roommate again. “You know what, mate, I’m just going to go.”

“Without cleaning the room?” Harry shrieked, throwing his hands in the air. Louis ignored him, taking quick steps to the door with Niall hot on heels. “Of course, run away. And don’t come back because I’m sleeping.”

Oh Louis hadn’t run away, in fact he had a plan in mind. He was going to miss his next lecture and go through with it. He ducked Niall, lying to him about lectures. It wasn’t exactly a lie, but then it was. He had a stop before he returned back to his room, and Harry would not like it.

Sure enough, an hour later when Harry woke up, he wasn’t happy. He spluttered, blowing the stinky sock from his face before he sat up, flinging the dirty clothes off that Louis had taken pains to throw all over him. He had also taken the time to throw paper balls and a few more soiled clothes around his bed, only Louis’ bed remaining clean. He grinned at Harry, schooling his face into one of innocence.

“Seems like you woke up,” he chirped, fluttering his eyelashes. It seemed to have the desired effect, making Harry’s face pinch further.

“What the fuck is this, Louis?” he muttered, shoving off the rest of the things that Louis had thrown on him. The room had a smell, which was usually exuded from damp clothes. And there were damp clothes, and trash all over in the room. He would be the one to clean of course, but it was worth it when Harry glared.

“You said I was messy,” Louis reminded, eyebrows rising and eyes bugging. He swung his feet, feeling really pleased despite the mess around him.

“I meant for you to not be,” he spat, looking taken aback. He looked rumpled, face soft and puffy. His eyes kept dropping shut, and he blinked to keep them open. In a way, it was an adorable sight as well as comical. “Keep your clothes to your side of the bed.

“They aren’t my clothes.”

“What the fuck,” he exclaimed, hurried pushing all of them off him. He stepped off his bed, foot landing in the wet tissue Louis had deliberately kept. “I’m gonna get you back for this, Tomlinson. Just watch out.”

He grimaced, sending another glare at Louis before he stormed off. Louis laughed, eyes squinting in the process before he cracked his knuckles. He grimaced at the mess he would have to clean and sighed. Why did he do stuff like this?

**

Over the course of two weeks which followed, Louis felt like he was drowning under coursework and lack of sleep. Louis and Harry had continued their back and forth of trying to ruin the other’s sleep, which resulted in their own sleep being destroyed as well. Even now, Louis’ eyes were bleary, threatening to shut any second while his ears were ringing with music, which he was playing loudly. And that combination stopped him from focusing on his assignment. And honestly, he didn’t even remember what the topic was anymore.

“Turn it down, you asshole,” Harry yelled, hands over his ears as he shot him a glare. Louis ignored him, as he usually did, blinking blankly at the screen. He could hear more words from his roommate, which sounded faraway and muffled. He really needed to sleep, Louis thought.

After Louis had gotten bored of playing the same Oasis song for a week, he had decided to play the Oasis discography instead. It was fine, as he bopped along to the music and fell asleep. And every time ‘Don’t look back in anger’ came on, Harry moaned and grumbled and Louis got a laugh out of it. But also, he was probably done with the song for another century for sure.

“Come on Louis please let me sleep,” Harry continued in a whine. Louis looked at him, noticing his pout and his hazy eyes and sighed.

“Alright but first take back the candles,” he said, scrunching his nose. Harry had taken to expand his candle collection and their room constantly smelled like it was in a spring bloom. There was a sickly sweet smell everywhere, lingering on Louis’ clothes. It had prompted him to finally rearrange them in his closet, which made Harry’s smirk smug. But the flickering light of the flame, it never stopped being scary. Especially how it lit up Harry’s broody face.

“You turn down the music first.”

“You know what –”                            

The door slammed open, cutting off whatever Louis was about to say. For a second Louis was scared that their RA had finally caught up to them, but an even scarier sight graced them – Liam.

“I’ve had enough,” he growled, eyes narrowed into slits as he marched in. His hair was disheveled, lips pressed in a thin line as he carefully dodged the candles lying on the floor. He snatched the speaker from under Harry’s bed and turned it off, throwing it towards Louis. He then picked up one of the candles and turned it off as well, thrusting it in Harry’s hand. He marched back to the door, looking a scary sight. The orange light was dangerously glinting across his shirtless torso, and darkening the crevices of his face as he stood, waggling his finger at them in warning before he left.

There was a shocked silence left in his wake and it confused Louis as to what had happened. He turned towards Harry, who had a similar expression of shock. There was a mutual understanding that passed between them, both of them backing out together. The other speaker was still playing, and funnily enough, it was ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’. Louis turned it off quickly, letting out a relieved sigh.

**

The good thing after they stopped their nightly arguments was that Louis wasn’t feeling tired anymore. The bad news was that Harry didn’t stop being just as annoying and with a little more energy.

“How could you go out wearing my shirt and not know!” Louis shrieked, glaring at the boy who was wearing the said shirt. Harry looked back, unimpressed.

Louis had laid out his t-shirt on his bed yesterday, intent to wear after showering. But after he had come back, it had just disappeared from there. Louis chalked it up to him misplacing his clothes again and just picked another one out. But then Harry walked in after his morning lectures, wearing the same white shirt he had misplaced, which had an identifiable hole on the sleeve. Also the shirt Harry was wearing was tight on his shoulders, while the white shirt Louis had worn was looser on his frame.

Louis pulled his collar up his collarbone, watching as Harry took this shirt off and threw it right at his face. He spluttered, glaring at Harry, who seemed to find amusement in Louis’ annoyance.

“Happy now?” he asked, not waiting for an answer as he walked to his closet.

“No,” Louis muttered, balling up his shirt in his hands. “You’ve probably stretched it out by now. Was that on purpose?”

“Yeah I love wearing tight shirts,” he deadpanned, turning to give Louis an unimpressed look. Louis snorted, eyeing the green shirt which was still lying on Harry’s bed before looking back. The other boy blushed, throwing his hands in the air. “Alright I love wearing tight shirts. Happy now?”

“Not yet,” Louis said, although a smile did make way on his face. Louis unfurled his shirt, using it as an excuse to not look at him. He remembered how Harry had worn a Packers shirt yesterday, it stretching too tightly across his chest. Louis had made sure to make fun of him, and his nipples which were poking out. “And you’ve definitely stretched out this shirt.”

“I just picked the shirt from my desk,” he explained, frustration and guilt peeking in his tone. Louis looked at him from the corner of his eyes, seeing him pull on a light blue jumper. He ruffled his hair before combing it back, one of his nervous habits. “I was late today. How was I supposed to know?”

“What about when it felt tighter than usual,” Louis asked, even if his tone was more stubborn than upset. He pursed his lips, as he took off his big shirt. He had taken to care less about his nakedness, more so after seeing how casual Harry was with it. Harry would shamelessly strip down every day, never bothering to cover himself up. It was admirable, in a way so Louis took a leaf out of his book and roamed around shirtless in the room. Louis threw Harry’s shirt, aiming for his face but the boy caught it from the air right before it hit him. He smiled smugly. Louis frowned.

“Like I told you, I was late so I didn’t pay much attention to it. Also, didn’t I tell you to pick up your clothes?”

“Not the point.”

Harry couched down to pick one of Louis’ shirts from his side of the floor, raising an eyebrow. Louis flushed, hiding his face as he put on his shirt. “See, Louis. Not my fault.”

As Louis had expected, his shirt had been stretched slightly. He frowned as he pulled on the hem, looking at his roommate. He found the concern on Harry’s face before he averted his eyes when Louis caught him. “You did stretch it. You’re such a giant.”

Harry huffed, standing up. “Well I can’t help it if you’re tiny, alright.”

“Take that back!” Louis exclaimed, wagging his finger while jutting out his bottom lip. Harry threw his head back in laughter, taking slow steps towards him until they were standing toe to toe. He was towering over him, like always and making Louis look shorter. He stood up on his tiptoes, grabbing onto Harry’s shoulder. “I am not tiny.”

Harry made a show of keeping a straight face, lips pressed down to stop his smile. “Okay then, you’re not tiny. You’re just short.” He backed away slowly, lips tilting up. He held up his hand, holding out his fingers as he said each word. “Teeny. Puny. Elfish. Petite. Miniature.”

After each synonym, he took another step back, inching towards the door. Louis just stood there, feeling offended. He spluttered, racking his brain for smart comebacks. “Well you’re just a giant baby.”

Harry laughed, clutching his belly as he shook his head. He winked at him, one foot out the door. “Face it Lou. You’re small.”

Louis gasped, feeling an incredible sense of déjà vu as he raced towards his door. He watched his roommate swagger away, frowning at his back. “You’re big,” he yelled, making Harry’s footsteps falter as he laughed.

Somewhere over his shoulder, someone laughed. Louis suddenly felt embarrassed of himself, rushing back in and slamming the door. His face was red, he knew as he walked towards his bed.

“Fuck you, Harry Styles,” he muttered, before picking his clothes which were spread all over the room.

**

“Who even eats a banana like that?” Louis asked, grimacing in second-hand embarrassment. He watched with narrowed eyes as Harry ignored him, picking up the second banana and peeling it from the opposite side. He then thrust it into his mouth, cheek bulging before he pulled it out again and took big bites of it. Frankly, it was weird and disgusting to watch, so much that Louis almost didn’t feel like eating. Almost. They were in public, for god's sakes! It was not the way to eat.

“Yeah well monkeys peel from the other end,” Harry supplied, eating open mouthed as he pointed to the end he had peeled from. Louis cast a glance at his banana, lips twitching down. He could see a guy behind Harry look at him, wide-eyed and open-mouthed. He glared at the man until he looked away before looking down at his own banana. He no longer felt an appetite for it, so he might give it away to an actual monkey. Harry swallowed down, shrugging at Louis. “I’m just doing it their way, meaning the actual way.”

“Are you calling yourself a monkey?” Louis inquired, leaning forward as he took a bite out of his sandwich. Harry’s cheeks flushed a beautiful shade as he looked at his hands. “Since that's right on point.”

“I’m just saying that –”

“Can you two shut the fuck up,” Niall shrieked loudly. It made Harry cut himself off, blinking as he looked towards their friend in surprise. Louis might have jumped a little at the volume, seeing not a smile or a gleeful glint in Niall’s eyes. It was a strange sight and completely out of place on him. His cheeks were red, eyes flitting from one boy to the other as he took deep breaths. Louis shifted a little to get away from him, feeling the irritation and fury. Liam reached out to grab Niall’s free hand, giving him a comforting squeeze.

Liam gave Harry and Louis a meaningful look, making them shrink down in their seats. Louis knew the two of them were growing steadily tired of their fights, even if Niall had found them amusing at the start. Maybe four weeks of arguments did that to you.

“Just talk to each other,” Niall continued, gritting his teeth as he shook his head. Louis exchanged a glance with Harry before looking back at his friend. “Sort out your differences. It is exhausting to you two going at each other every time we hang out. Just stop alright. Harry, not everyone gets the single dorm and Louis, first impressions don’t mean shit. Also shut the fuck up and let me eat breakfast in peace.”

There was an awkward silence when Niall stopped talking, picking at his food. Louis turned to look at Harry, finding him worrying his bottom lip. They had similar expressions of guilt and surprise.

“He’s right, you know,” Liam added quietly, making two heads turn towards him. He wasn’t looking at them, casually eating his food. “The two of you will get along wonderfully, if you stopped bickering. And while I have your attention, you two mirror each other.”

“We do not!” Louis protested, catching Harry’s eye when he realized they had said the same at once. They glared at each other, finger rising simultaneously to point accusingly. “It’s all your fault.”

Louis maintained the eye contact, mind flashing back through all the weeks. He remembered wearing the same white shirt without looking at each other, hand reaching for the same object more than once. He also remembered how they laughed Niall’s jokes together, or teased Liam with the same words. It was true. What Liam had said was true, he realized. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks, making him lose the intensity of his glare. He looked away first, squeezing too much sauce on his sandwich as he ate, not looking at his roommate again. Were their friends right? Was it too much now? Would they really get along? Who knows.

Louis was stubborn, and he wouldn’t be the first to purposefully back out. If they end it, it would be mutual, and not from Louis’ side. After all, he didn’t start it.

**

After Niall’s outburst, Harry and Louis tried holding their tongues when it came to one another. They talked less the following week, keeping to themselves and avoiding the other completely. Louis kept himself locked in the library, busy with the two majors he was pursuing while Harry... Louis knew nothing about him. He had no clue about where he went or what he did; just Louis didn’t see him most of the day. They were forced to hang out when Niall and Liam insisted, or invited them to parties. The two of them would exchange sarcastic comments or mocking, but they didn’t talk necessarily. They walked back to their dorm together after parties, earlier than others. They didn’t talk about it, and neither did they give each their friends any explanation. It was a good, although awkward routine. But the silences didn’t satisfy Niall or Liam. Louis had a feeling they weren’t happy, as they sat in their seats at McDonald’s.

“We’re not happy about this,” Liam stated, not even five minutes after they had gotten their orders. Louis rolled his eyes him, halting his movements. He looked at his friend slowly, groaning at the grim face Liam was making as he munched on his fries. He knew it was a trap when they had exchanged a conspiring look as they exited the campus. They had said Harry wouldn’t be able to make it, but Louis now supposed that was a lie. This was most definitely a set up, especially from the looks of Niall. Louis sighed, unwrapping his burger and decidedly ignoring them. “It’s disrupting our day as well, the tension between you two.”

“You know how it is when two of your good friends keep arguing all the time?” Niall asked, his question being very much rhetoric. Louis was tempted to retort, saying how they didn’t even talk anymore thanks to them. But Niall, having anticipated it, gave him a stern look to silence him. Niall’s face was void of emotions again, and it was still strange. So he swallowed down his words along with a bite of his burger. “It feels awful, alright?”

“He started it,” Louis maintained. His words were muffled due to the food in his mouth, and Liam grimaced. He didn’t comment on it, so Louis gave him a wide smile, which showed the contents of his mouth. Liam wrinkled his nose more and Louis was amused, knowing this was what he deserved this time.

“And yet, you continued.”

“At least one of you needs to be the adult here,” Liam added, popping another fry in his mouth. Niall hummed, taking a bite of his wrap and he nodded in agreement. “It’s been weeks.”

Five weeks to be exact, Louis’ mind supplied.

“I’m aware, Lima,” Louis said, squirting more sauce onto his burger. He looked up through his lashes. “You tell that to him.”

“Louis,” Liam asserted. He paused to sigh, shaking his head. “You need to be the adult here alright.” He pursed his lips, leaning forward on his arms with a solemn expression. His big brown eyes, which were usually full of warmth now held worry. And it set Louis on the edge, as he grew steadily uncomfortable of the intervention.

Objectively, Louis knew he should’ve stopped a while back. Especially after Niall’s outburst, or when their arguments affected his sleep. He had been over this before. But he had convinced himself to not back out, for some reason. He didn’t want Harry to think he had won whatever it was, and get more bigheaded than he already was. Louis wasn’t so much competitive before, but he was unnecessarily stubborn.

But also, Louis didn’t know why he was the one being given the second lecture. They had been through this once before. Why again and why him?

“Because you’re clearly the toddler here,” Niall answered for him, smirking for the first time since they had sat. Louis frowned at him. Had he talked out loud before?

“That is so _not_ true,” he scoffed, shaking his head while his friends chuckled. He pouted, crossing his arms over his chest before sticking out his tongue. Liam stopped his laugh, making his face blank again as he stared. Louis sighed, rolling his eyes. “Okay fine. I’ll be on my best behavior. Happy now? But you two also have to have this talk with Harry so it doesn’t start again alright?”

“Don’t you worry about it, Lou,” Niall chirped, sucking on his fingers. Louis blinked at him, lips twisting in disgust before he looked at Liam, who held a similar expression. “But you know. You two could also try fucking it out of your systems.”

“Um sorry what?” Louis question, head snapping towards his other friend so quick he got a crick in his neck. He narrowed his eyes, ignoring the pain currently shooting up his neck and the anger bubbling up in his veins. It wasn’t directed towards Niall, of course since he was in the dark but it was definitely towards the assumption. Louis pressed his lips in a thin line, slowly shaking his head. “It’s not... no!”

He took in a deep breath, wishing it would calm him down. Fuck it out? What did it even mean? Did his friends think this was a sexual thing? Louis was not a sexual thing! Also, he doubted there was a sexual tension lingering between them. It was pure irritation, speckled with anger, if that. Niall had got it all wrong. He took in another deep breath.

Louis hadn’t come out to his friends as asexual yet with it being only a little over a month since they met. But he had talked clearly about his past, leaving breadcrumbs for anyone willing enough to chase it. Even at the next party, when Niall hadn’t stopped going on about ‘types’, Louis had told him he wasn’t interested in casual hook-ups. But that probably wasn’t enough. He had even made some ace jokes, whenever opportunity presented itself but no one ever bothered picking up on the ace subtext. Not their fault, really but it pissed him off sometimes. He tried not to feel bitter, since Louis was the one to withhold information from them. It was the only reason why he didn’t launch into his usual speech, swallowing down the words.

“I feel offended that you think I am _sexually_ attracted to Harry,” he said, keeping his voice neutral but focusing on the ‘sexual’ part. His anger must have shone through a little, since Liam and Niall leaned back in surprise. They look apologetic, Louis thought, as he clenched his fists under the table. “No offense to him, he’s a handsome guy. But I’m not into him at all. And it isn’t always sexual you know. Sometimes people just irk me a lot and I hate them. That's what this is too.”

“Alright alright,” Niall interjected, cutting off Louis’ angry ramble before it began. And thankfully that, since he would surely unintentionally out himself and he was planning to wait for a few months at least. He didn’t like going around and sharing his sexuality, not always.

By the end of senior year, he was known in the hometown as ‘the guy who wouldn’t have sex’ and it was embarrassing. He didn’t want to be known like that again. Louis clenched his fists tightly until his fingernails were digging in his skin before he sighed. His friends had changed the topic, casting worrying and guilty glances towards Louis, knowing they had hit a nerve. Their voices though, seemed like they came from afar as Louis found himself lost in his thoughts.

He was feeling disappointed, as he always did when he thought about it. Louis never understood why everything had to be sexual, or rooted in sexual attraction. It confused him as a young teen and irked him as he grew older. Every book, every movie he had seen, they had to be sexual and Louis could never relate to it. It wasn’t that deep, according to him. And now, with him being almost accused of having a sexually frustrated fight with Harry, brought all of the emotions back. Neither of them had hinted at sexual attraction, or at least Louis hadn’t picked up on it from the other side.

Louis was also sure Harry didn’t give those vibes ever. He had been sure of it since the party, when he had looked at him with worried eyes and asking for an escape. He grew surer when Harry, like him, left parties early and didn’t hook up. Louis was sure that Harry was just like him, but he couldn’t confirm. He might be shy, which didn’t seem his thing, or he was a prude. But either way, he wasn’t sexually attracted to Louis. Actually, he might not even like Louis as a person. So it bugged Louis why Niall and Liam thought there was something between them.

They were similar, yes, but also unlikely roommates.

And often this train of thoughts seemed to lead him down to a path he didn’t like to venture. It was why Louis didn’t think about the future but... he wished he was a sexual person sometimes. It would be easier then, he reasoned. He wished he could be a person who was attracted to men sexually as well, so his selective romantic attraction didn’t pain him. He wished he wouldn’t get anxious and turn down dates just because the other person expected him to put out. Louis never regretted being asexual, since it was who he was. But he also felt lonely and craving romance in his life. He thought of Nico, whom he liked romantically but grew too anxious around and then bailed. It wasn’t fair to him.

He blinked furiously, as he tried crawling out of his thoughts. He shoved the last bit of his burger in his mouth, and for some reason, willed himself to think of Harry. Louis had known from the minute Harry had walked in that he was beautiful. Even if they fought, he knew Harry was a beautiful person inside. He wasn’t that blinded by irritation. But any and all of his romantic interests in him were long dead. And the sexual part didn’t start so... but then it didn’t matter what he thought.

“It doesn’t matter,” Louis muttered under his breath, staring blankly at an empty space on the table. The other two boys didn’t hear, and the conversation had now moved far ahead.

**

Two days later, Louis fell sick.

It had been a good day outside, the perfect temperature to be able to explore Los Angeles without sweating through your clothes. Liam and Niall had thought the same, inviting Louis to go along with them. At that time, Louis had a bit of a headache so he had to decline. He could even finish his piling assignments before taking a nap. And while doing the said assignments, he started coughing and sneezing. And before he knew it, it got worse. Louis found himself lying on his bed, tucked under his sheets. He felt weak due to the fever he had now, and coughing every few minutes. He did not feel good at all.

Louis groaned, reaching blindly for the box of tissues beside his bed and found it to be the last one. He groaned loudly, sneezing and then falling onto his bed. He frowned at the ceiling. The weekend was not off to a good start.

Louis was laying on his bed for two hours now, no medicine with him and no sleep either. There was no one to get him anything since his phone was too damn far from reach. He closed his eyes, trying to recall his mum’s words. She always used to say that taking the right medicines and then sleeping it off was the best cure. It had always worked before, when she would also be there to take care of him. He was just sad and sick right now, and resenting his desire for independence. Louis sneezed, wiping his nose and throwing the last of his tissue over the floor.

This was great, just fucking great.

And then things got a little worse as the door opened. Louis squeezed his eyes shut, knowing what would happen next and sighed.

“I cannot believe you, Gems,” drawled a familiar voice, followed by a rumbling laugh. The door clicked shut again, footsteps drawing closer. Louis didn’t have to look over to know who it was, so he just pulled the sheets over his head. He tried to be subtle while doing it, opening his eyes again and waited. Harry, oblivious to his presence, continued talking in hushed whispers. Louis didn’t listen in, just regulated his breathing. But he could feel it in his chest when a rough cough wracked through him. Harry stopped speaking suddenly, before making a weird noise in the back of his throat. “Listen Gems, I’ll call you back later alright? Yeah I’m fine it’s just... yeah fine. Bye.”

And then only silence was left in the room, breaking only when Louis coughed loudly and winced. Harry’s presence was almost nonexistent, so quiet Louis wasn’t sure if he was there even. But he hadn’t heard his boots clink away so, he was there alright. Louis’ throat felt parched after his latest coughing fit, knowing he had left a bottle beside his bed. But to grab that he’s need to poke his head out and he didn’t want to. Louis kept waiting for the heeled shoes to walk away for all of three minutes before he couldn’t manage his thirst. As quietly as he could, he lowered the sheets, and his eyes met green ones. He let out a surprised squeak, which he wasn’t proud of, as he jumped. The movement caused the sheets to fall all the way to his chest.

Louis had expected Harry to be on his side of the room. But instead found him to be only a few inches from his face. His eyebrows were furrowed, eyes filled with concern as he stared. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah I’m –” he started before being interrupted by a cough right when he was about to say ‘fine’. Maybe it was a sign not to lie, he thought, covering up his face just in time. Harry leaned only a little back, as his furrow deepened. His eyes darted all over his face, lingering on his nose which Louis could only assume was red. His gaze was unsettling, making Louis want to fix his fringe or something. He looked away from his as he said, “Alright I’m sick.” He coughed. “Clearly. And I’m in no state to banter with you. So can we please do this another day thanks.”

Harry stayed silent, although his lips turned down into a frown. He seemed almost offended at his words. Louis watched as Harry raised his hand and brought it closer to his face. “May I?”

Louis nodded slowly, a little uncertain as he closed his eyes. Harry pressed his cool hand to his forehead, making a sound. Louis opened his eyes again, watching emotions flit through those green eyes before settling on worry.

“You’re burning up,” he whispered, frowning as he looked into Louis’ eyes. Louis was confused by his intense reaction, but also a little pleased. “Did you take any medicine for that?”

He hesitated, biting his lip guiltily before shaking his head. “Didn’t have any.”

“Well fuck,” he muttered before the hand was gone from over Louis’ forehead. Harry stood up suddenly, running his fingers through his hair as his eyes flitted over the place. He began pacing his room, fingers pinching his lower lip and Louis found himself following his movements. He was wearing two plaid shirts, Louis noticed, along with his usual skinnies. He was wearing worn, brown boots this time which clinked quietly on the floor. It was a very casual look, he thought, right before he sneezed. Harry’s head snapped towards him at the sound, forehead creasing as he huffed. He then turned on his heel and walked out the door without so much as a word. And now, this Louis wasn’t expecting of him at all.

For some reason, it hurt more than any of Harry’s words ever had.

Louis blinked at the door. He had assumed Harry to be a good person, despite the cocky attitude aimed towards him. He had hoped he would be good to him, once Louis stopped trying to ruin his day. But clearly, that didn’t happen. Maybe Harry did have a problem with him, something which he wouldn’t get over anytime soon. Maybe he was still holding a grudge, which was why he walked away than stay. It made Louis feel sicker inside, sorry for himself. He huffed, shaking his head.

Louis gulped down some water before lying down and closing his eyes. He tried to avoid his burning skin and itchy throat, trying his best to fall asleep. He cocooned himself in his sheets, sniffling and coughing. And he fell asleep like that soon, but was woken up just as quick.

It was the sound of his door opening, which was enough to disrupt his light nap. He blinked his eyes, feeling disoriented. His body was still aching but he tried turning to look around, finding the source of his disturbance quick enough. He frowned at his roommate’s back, before trying to fall back asleep. He didn’t want him to know he was awake, but his cough had other plans. He winced, as he watched Harry turn around at the sound and cursed himself.

Harry was holding a white bag along with a box of tissues, walking closer. His hair was now tied back, but just the longer strands. It was some kind of a half bun, leaving half his hair loose. And it was weirdly cute, his traitorous brain thought even as his subconscious told him to glare. He squinted his eyes at Harry as he drew closer and crouching down beside him.

“What are you...” he croaked before launching into a coughing fit. Louis covered his mouth, observing the concerned tilt to Harry’s lips. He looked like he had aged a lot with those worry lines.

“I brought you soup,” he whispered, giving him a small smile as he lifted his hand holding the plastic bag. Louis watched with bated breath as Harry carefully brought out a Tupperware box and inched it towards him. Even though the container was closed, it gave out a rich aroma which made Louis’ stomach rumble hopefully. He suddenly realized he had eaten nothing except for an apple this morning. Louis sniffed, inhaling the delicious smell before sneezing. Harry chuckled, offering him the tissue box with other hand. Louis grabbed at it thankfully, making his roommate chuckle again. “I’ll keep this box next to your bed alright? And I’ve also brought some pills for you to take. So sit up, eat the soup and then take the pills. Alright?”

“Why?” Louis asked weakly, watching a wry smile flit over Harry’s face.

“I wanted to be a nurse before,” he murmured, shaking his head. He rubbed the back of his neck, not meeting his eyes. “When I was a kid, I wanted to be a nurse. But then I realized it’s too much work, you know. I couldn’t possibly do it. So I decided I’ll just help sickly people instead.” he looked up quickly, corner of his lip twitching. “I didn’t mean like... I just like helping. So yeah.”

Louis stared at him, perplexed at the new information about him. Harry was talking to him properly, looking sheepish and second-guessing himself. And he liked helping people? He had taken a confusing turn while speaking, as he always seemed to do but he got there eventually. But he was helping Louis as well, which was... nice. He had brought food, medicine and tissues – everything Louis wanted since he collapsed on his bed. Was this a dream? Could be, since he remembered falling asleep before. But the rumble of stomach told him otherwise, so he kept on staring.

Harry gave him a small smile, tilting his head to a side. He placed the Tupperware on Louis’ desk as he stood up. “Do you need help sitting up?”

Louis could sit up by himself, possibly. But he was a little stunned and confused right now, so he nodded feebly. Harry nodded to himself before grabbing Louis gently by his shoulders and managing to help him up. Louis shifted himself back, so he was leaning against the wall, breathing heavily. Harry set about opening the container and the smell which wafted from it enticed Louis’ senses. Harry picked out a spoon from his bag, and offered Louis the container. Louis’ mouth was watering as he moved his hands to hold it, but his roommate pulled it closer a little. Louis found him staring intensely, lips pursed in thought.

“Do you want me to feed you?”

 Louis considered it for a few seconds. Harry was looking serious, no hint of sarcasm or mockery present. He did love being taken care of, but his roommate had done too much for him already. And he felt guilty for asking more of him, especially when this was the politest conversation they had. “No thank you Harry, but I think I can feel myself.”

He accompanied his words with a smile, letting him know he was grateful for the offer. He accepted the container, carefully balancing it in his lap. The soup tasted like heaven, just as he had assumed from the smell. He shut his eyes, moaning appreciatively as he ate another spoonful. When he opened his eyes again, he found Harry smiling as held his hands behind his back. He looked like a pleased toddler, Louis thought. And it was cute. “This is delicious. Where did you get it from? I need the address.”

“Actually,” he started, cheeks coloring as he looked down at his boots. He was bashfully, as he looked up from his lashes. Louis was suddenly endeared by it, not knowing where the fondness was coming from. He chalked it up to sickness. “I made it myself.”

“You’re kidding,” he exclaimed, eyes bugging with surprise. It made Harry giggle, a sound he had never heard before. So to distract himself, Louis stuffed another spoonful of soup in his mouth. “Where did you make it? Do they allow to cook in the cafeteria?”

“I don’t know,” he mumbled, biting his lip. He leaned forward, thumbing away the drops of soup which slipped down Louis’ mouth. It caught them both by surprise, as Harry froze. He hurriedly leaned away, blushing furiously. Louis was just... he didn’t know how he felt really. “Sorry it’s a habit. But I went to my sister’s place. She lives close by and that's where I disappear off to from time to time. If you were ever curious.”

“I was curious actually.” He gave him a half-smile, shrugging. He had wondered numerous times where his roommate went, but didn’t bother about it much. He assumed it to be some friend’s dorm but now he realized, Harry had no friends. That was why he hung out with them.

Harry smiled sheepishly as he accepted the empty container from Louis, careful not to brush their fingers. He then handed him a glass of water and some pills, which Louis swallowed down quickly. He could feel Harry’s gaze on him, still unsettling. His eyes were anxiously darting over Louis’ face, fingers pinching his bottom lip again. He was nervous, so Louis could tell.

“I’m sorry Louis.” He looked down suddenly. “For the day we met.”

“What?” he asked, blinking confusedly. This might be a bigger surprise than when Harry came back, if he was being honest. He watched as Harry shrugged, blushing and keeping his eyes down.

“Yeah I’m not excusing my behavior and neither should you but...”  He sighed. He fiddled with his rings, pushing them up and down his fingers. He was restless, anxious and it was evident. “I was in a bad mood that day. Gemma, my sister, she was supposed to book me a room here. Living in a dorm wasn’t my plan either, but she said I needed to expand my social circle. So she pushed me up to here. And I was anxious yeah, thinking everyone who passed me by was judging me. And my golden boots, they attract attention, you know.”

He chuckled self deprecatingly, playing with his hair. Louis frowned, but did not speak up.

“So,” he huffed. “I walk up to here and I see it’s a doubles room, which I totally did not expect. But I should’ve known, as it was Gemma. You were lying on the bed, looking at me. And I don’t know if you know but you radiate an aura of confidence. You’re so in control of yourself and it makes me anxious, since I’m not. I got so anxious, I blurted out something and tried to sound as confident as you, but ended up looking brash. I’m sorry for that.”

Harry took a deep breath, finally looking up. He was biting down on his lip. “And I really hate the Gallagher brothers.”

“Not apologizing for that?” Louis teased before laughing quietly. Harry let go of his lip and stared. Then he blinked before setting about to pick up the dirty tissues from the floor as Louis frowned. He was confused by this guy, who was apparently anxious all the time. It was weird, and a far cry from what he had assumed about him. Was it all just one big misunderstanding? And had Louis been the one to fuel it? It was confusing him. “Harry!”

Harry squeaked, looking up as he was reaching for the last tissue. He had gone completely red, eyes wide with panic.

“Don’t do that,” he continued.

Harry dropped the tissues he was holding in his hand. He straightened up, laughing wildly as he took shaky steps towards the door. “It’s alright I get it. I can leave. But I’m sorry. For everything I was –”

“Harry,” Louis repeated, cutting off his ramble. “Don’t go either.”

“Really? I know you hate me it’s fine.”

“I don’t hate you,” he insisted, shaking his head. And he meant it. Louis couldn’t recall a time when he hated Harry. He was irritated, sure. He wanted him to leave, definitely. But he didn’t actually hate him, now that he looked back. But now he realized just how ridiculous his roommate was. He huffed a laugh, shaking his head and watched the other frown. Louis patted the space beside him, beckoning him closer. Harry hesitated, but walked closer anyway and sat down gingerly at the end of his bed. “I don’t think I ever hated you.”

“You don’t?” he asked in a small voice. He looked like a completely different person than yesterday. His eyes were wide and full of hope, as he leaned closer subconsciously. Louis shook his head, smiling.

“I was just irritated of you, your habits, and your nagging. I also thought _you_ hated _me_.”

“I could never,” Harry assured hurriedly, shaking his head so fast that his hair flew onto his face. He pushed back the stray strands, blinking furiously and pouting. “I was anxious, you know. That's why I did the early morning yoga. It relieves my stress but I didn’t know I’d wake you. And afterwards I just did it to get back at you. You’re just so... larger than life.”

“Am I?” he teased, shaking his head. Harry was grinning, shoulders hunching as he relaxed. He slowly scooted back to the wall, keeping his distance still. Louis let his head fall back so he could look at his roommate properly, and in a new light. “I like your hairstyle.”

“Now that's the medicine talking through you,” Harry retorted, waggling his finger at him as he blushed. Louis laughed.

“No I think it’s the cough syrups that make you go loopy. I’m in control of myself now.”

“And sick?”

“Not so sick,” Louis said softly. “Thank you.”

Harry shrugged in response, mumbling about how it was least he could do. And the icy walls between them broke, just like that. Louis talked about his family, a topic he loved and Harry nodded but didn’t add from his side. He talked about his sister, before moving on to regaling him with bad jokes. Louis laughed until he coughed, which had Harry rub his back soothingly. And that was when the door opened again and in walked their friends.

“You wouldn’t believe what – what is happening here?”

“Niall, would you scoot in,” Liam complained from behind him before pushing in. He stared at the scene with a similar expression of shock. Neither of them was used to walking in on them sitting close, and they didn’t know what do. “What is happening here?”

“Louis is sick,” Harry informed, withdrawing his arm and nodding.

“And Harry is my nurse,” Louis added, jabbing him playfully in the side which had Harry whining before he laughed. Their friends didn’t move from their spot, holding up bags in their hand and jaws dropped. “We’ve mended fences, like you said.”

“Is there a problem?” Harry asked, batting his eyes innocently and that made their friends snap out of their trance.

**

It was surprisingly easy to get along with Harry after that. When Harry stopped being pretentious and Louis stopped being annoying, they realized they could tolerate each other just fine. In fact, they were similar.

“I can’t believe those two were right,” Louis said, chuckling in the dark. Harry had revealed to him that in fact, did have trouble sleeping. He told Louis that as he handed him more soup. He had gone back and brought some more once Louis had fallen asleep that evening. Niall and Liam had been rendered confused by their antics, more than once questioning them on how it got resolved. Apparently, it was hard for them to believe they could along despite them being the ones to suggest it. “We get along great.”

“Yeah,” he said, chuckling along. “Did they have that lame intervention with you where they told you to drop the act and come clean?”

“No,” he said, shaking his head even if he doubted Harry could see. He turned onto his side so he could look at Harry’s figure, half shrouded by the dark. Harry was looking back, his eyes twinkling lightly and reflecting the moonlight. “I mean the intervention was there but they told me to grow up and talk.”

“Well you do need a little bit growing,” Harry said, amusement evident in his voice. Louis raised his eyebrows, anticipating a comeback to that and knowing what it might be. Harry didn’t disappoint. “You’re tiny, if you didn’t know.”

“Watch it Styles,” he teased, waggling a finger and making his roommate laugh. It was a soft, beautiful sound which filled up the room. Louis tried laughing along, but his laughs turned into coughs and he had to stop. “I’m 5’9.”

“Sure.” Harry kept staring at him, and Louis stared right back. “You need to sleep now, you know. So you can get better for tomorrow. Didn’t you have coursework to do?”

Louis hummed, knowing that he had. He felt better than he had this morning, his fever having disappeared and his coughs not as rough. Yet he didn’t think he could focus tomorrow at all, knowing he would have to push his assignments to Monday. His eyes drooped shut. There weren’t any snores in the room so he knew Harry was awake, and he tried to be too but he couldn’t fight sleep as it took over.

The morning came soon, in fact at six am when Harry was doing yoga, as he did before. He was wearing the same tight pink pants, hair tied back as he did another one of his stretching poses. He was more on his side of the room, the music turned down and he seemed unaware of Louis being awake.

Louis blinked sleepily, still feeling a little drowsy. “Can’t sleep in, Styles?” he asked, voice rough with sleep and tinged with amusement. He would be annoyed before, but not right now. Yoga was a way for Harry to combat his anxiety, or get tired enough to sleep. And looking at the bags under his eyes as he turned, Louis thought it was the latter.

“Lou?” he squeaked, dropping his pose and looking apologetic instantly. He tried to muss up his hair but realized he couldn’t due to the headband and his hand hanged useless in the air. He pressed his palms together. “I’m so sorry, Lou, I didn’t think I’d wake you. I’ll just stop doing –”

“No I don’t mind,” Louis mumbled, blinking and squinting his eyes to see. He didn’t have to get up early, and after Harry stopped he knew he could fall right back asleep. His throat was hurting as much, so he continued. “I was curious. You do your thing. Good night.”

And he turned over, smiling at the relieved giggle Harry let out behind him. He vowed, in his sleepy state to help Harry out. It was only fair, since he had ruined his sleep before. He could restore it too, he knew. He just needed to ask his mom how.

**

“Harry,” he said, once Harry had switched off the lights and fallen into bed. He could hear an answering hum from the other side before rustling of sheets. “Do you always feel this sleepless?”

“No not really,” he mumbled, hesitating over something. Louis frowned as he stared at the ceiling but didn’t call him out. He didn’t mean to be annoying, even if he was curious. Their friendship was tentative, and Harry was unlike Niall who revealed his life story right after they met. “It’s just when I’m – it’s sometimes yeah. Usually Gemma coaxes me to sleep by talking continuously, or until she tires out.”

“I can do that,” Louis piped. He had called his mom that afternoon, and she told him a way which he couldn’t possibly do. It involved cooking something, and he didn’t have a place to cook so he found himself useless. This, though he could do. He loved talking, especially about his day. It used to tire out his friend too often, and of course it would tire Harry out as well. “I love talking. So where should I start?”

“Anywhere,” Harry replied, chuckling.

“Shh wasn’t talking to you,” Louis said faux sternly. “So oh get this. I called my mom today, to talk as usual you know. She tells me she’s having problem with the youngest twins because Doris, is acting like me. And she said that in a way which means bad.”

“No way,” Harry intoned, laughing at the dramatic way he spoke.

“Right? I’m an angel. And while she was telling me this, Doris screamed behind her and...”

Louis kept talking, snorting as he talked about his siblings’ gimmicks. Sooner than he had expected, snores fill up the room, making Louis stop. He looks at the other bed, finding his roommate sleeping already. He looked blissful, in the minimal light that streams in the window and Louis smiled. Job accomplished.  

**

Louis pushed the door back with the heel of his shoe, flinching as it closed with a bang. Three heads turned at the sound in surprise, before ignoring once they saw who it was. Louis shook his head at their disinterest, letting them continue their talk. Harry was telling them some story, which all of them knew would end up nowhere, with exaggerated hand gestures. Louis cradled the plastic bag in his hands while letting his backpack drop. He flicked his fringe to a side before turning around in an elaborate spin but found no one watching. Harry’s eyes flicked up, giving him a private smile before continuing his story.

Louis huffed, shaking his head at his friends’ disinterest. A week ago, this situation would have annoyed him but right now it made him smile. “I have cookies,” he sang loudly, making three pair of eyes snap towards him again. Louis grinned smugly as he walked towards them, although his eyes were focused on only his roommate. Harry was sitting on the bed along with Liam, while Niall had dragged a chair to sit facing them.

“I’d love a cookie,” Niall said, making grabby hands at him but Louis moved the bag out of his reach. Niall clutched his chest dramatically while giving him a withered look which Louis ignored. He had only eyes for Harry, and dropped the bag into his lap.

“It’s cookies for only the princess here.” He nodded to Harry’s shirt, which had a big crown and a bee on it.

He ignored Niall’s squawk and subsequently cries of being a princess as well. Harry smiled widely, eyes narrowed into almost slits as he hungrily grabbed the bag and worked it open. Louis watched him with delight, loving the smile on Harry’s face. He pointedly ignored Liam and Niall’s similar accusatory looks and glares even if he could see it.

Harry picked out one of the chocolate chip cookie before hurriedly biting into and moaning. “This is so delicious,” he mumbled, closing his eyes as he chewed.

“I always buy myself some so I thought why not.” He shrugged noncommittally, before poking Liam’s foot. Liam scowled, trying to kick him but Louis kept relentlessly poking him. It didn’t achieve his mission so he crawled into the small space between Liam and Harry, shifting his bum. “Come on now, scoot Liam. There a good boy.”

“I’m not a dog,” Liam grumbled as he shifted and poked Louis back. He rolled his eyes when Louis knocked his shoulder with Harry’s, making the latter open his eyes again and give him a grin.

“Don’t we get a get a cookie too?” Niall asked loudly, breaking the two of them out of their stare. Louis raised his eyebrows at him, tilting his head to a side.

“You will,” he started, pausing dramatically and taking pleasure how Niall’s mouth was almost watering. “When you nurse me back to health like Harold here did.” Niall protested but Louis ignored it in favor of looking at Harry. He had the cookie pursed between his lips as he smiled around it. Louis bit his lip, knowing he had to say. “And I’m sorry for treating you like I did before.”

“It’s alright,” Harry mumbled, words muffled by it. He gave Louis a sheepish smile, cheeks coloring before he picked out the cookie and repeated the same, cookie-less. “I was equally as bad. Should’ve just apologized and –”

“I brought you breakfast on the first day,” Liam complained, batting his arm. His eyebrows were furrowed together and it was a comical sight. Harry thought the same as he launched into a fit of giggles, making crumbs fall on his shirt. “Why don’t I get a cookie?”

“I rewarded you with my friendship, Li,” Louis told him, laughing when he received a glare.

Harry reached over Louis to hand Liam the bag, grinning. “Take the bag Liam, I’ve had my share.” He gave him a wink as well, before poking Louis on the shoulder. “So Louis,” Harry continued, making Louis smile at him fondly. “How did you know I like cookies, especially chocolate chip?”

Louis shrugged nonchalantly, trying to act as if he didn’t know his cheeks were pink. He looked away from his roommate and towards his side of the wall. It looked rather empty without the large Oasis poster, which he had taken down two days ago. He was tired of it for a lifetime, just as he was of their songs. He still liked them but, he had enough of them. Then Louis had causally lain on his bed, counting down until Harry entered. Harry had smiled at Louis, glancing warily at the wall before his face turned into one of surprise. He had looked at Louis, jaw dropping in surprise before he cheered, fist pumping the air and launched himself onto Louis.

“Why did you take it down,” he had asked, grinning wildly.

“Liam Gallagher’s face judged me as I changed.”

And Harry had laughed, shaking his head and complained about the same. Good day, that.

In the present though, he was scrambling for an answer which didn’t sound as embarrassing as the truth. He knew Liam and Niall were waiting too. The truth was that without realizing, Louis had been noting down things about Harry. And as he thought back, basking in the fresh light cast by their interacting since Saturday, he realized he hadn’t hated Harry at all. He had been noticing his nerves, the way he blinked even more slowly as he thought or how he bit on his knuckles. He had this huge folder of things he had memorized, and as he passed the shop as usual, he brought the cookies on a whim. And now he had to explain it in a way he wouldn’t get ribbing, or gloating looks from his friends.

“Once I figured out that you weren’t an actual hipster,” he said, throwing a pointed look at Harry’s pink boots which lay by the bed. Harry snorted loudly. He had revealed last night that his outfits were actually gifts and not all of them were his actual choices. He didn’t elaborate, and Louis didn’t ask. “I observed what you ate. And then I realized you were terribly in love with chocolate. So I took a guess and brought them. And I’m glad you liked it.”

“Loved it,” Harry said before shoving the last piece of cookie into his mouth. He threw an arm around Louis to pull him closer while chewing obnoxiously. “But when was that? The day you realized? Yesterday?”

Louis cleared his throat, fingers fiddling with the end of his shirt. He focused on the smaller poster on his wall, licking his lips anxiously. “Two weeks ago.”

There were three surprised gasps, one right into his ear. Harry was smiling smugly as he poked Louis on his ribcage. He yelped, trying to squirm away but before trapped by Harry’s arm. “Get off. Or I won’t bring you anything.”

“Aw someone is ticklish,” Harry cooed, before poking him again. Louis kicked his legs and tried to get away, hands flailing around and hitting Liam instead. The latter squawked, holding the cookies safely in his hands as he got off the bed. It was just in time, since Louis let out a war cry as he retaliated, tickling Harry fiercely. As Harry laughed, he fell back onto the bed, screaming and trying to tickle Louis. They were lost in their own bubble soon enough, with Liam and Niall watching them curiously and a little bit bewildered.

“Are you seeing this shit, Ni,” Liam asked, pulling out another cookie for himself. Niall immediately grabbed the bag, and took the cookies he had been lusting for. He hummed as he bit into it. Liam kept his eyes narrowed, not knowing what to question them on. It had been a stark change from a week ago, when they’d be screaming for a different reason while giving each other cold glares. “It’s been just three days. Three days and they’re closer than ever. They’ve forgotten us, Niall and they’re acting like... that. What is going on?”

“This is love,” Niall sighed, laughing along with Harry and shaking his head in delight. “This is all because of –”

“Don’t you dare take the credit for –”

“Me,” Niall concluded, nodding to himself and looking chuffed. Liam groaned, rolling his eyes and feeling extremely frustrated by his friends. He stuffed a cookie in his mouth to stop himself from speaking, knowing it was no use whatsoever.

Two days into meeting Harry and Louis, Niall had been convinced they belonged together. He had been trying his best and then gloating about his excellent matchmaking skills. Eventually he realized he wouldn’t succeed, which made him all the more frustrated and give up. But now, it looked like the first week Niall was back, and so was Liam’s frustration from the first week, just for a different reason. He sighed, walking out of the room and no one noticed his absence.

Niall might be right about the love thing, but partially. Liam had known Harry liked, or least admired, Louis from the start but it was difficult to tell about the latter. Louis had been secretive about his love life, and extremely gifted at hiding his thoughts when he wanted to. Liam’s only concern was that Harry’s heart shouldn’t break, and neither should Niall’s, since he was invested. But he also had a feeling everything will work out between the two, at least after Louis’ show of affection today.

Hopefully.

**

Louis let out a low whistle as Harry changed, before laughing. Harry gave him a withered look as he pulled up his sweatpants and shook his head. He was pursing his lips, intent not to smile so Louis exaggerated his surprised reaction to break his resolution. It was fun being annoying but in a different, softer way.

“Look who’s wearing loose clothes,” Louis jeered, hands covering his mouth. Harry kept his back towards him as he tied his hair back, although his smile wasn’t hidden. He was dressed up in sweatpants and a basic shirt, intent to go to his class. It had been a surprise when Harry had laid them in the morning before going to take a shower, and Louis had biting his tongue. And when Harry started putting them on, he started shrieking like a mad person. “Harry is wearing track pants!”

“I happen to like sweatpants alright,” Harry said, rolling his eyes fondly when he turned. Louis smiled at him cockily, giving him a pointed onceover. He had dressed like Louis had been for the past month, complete with Vans in place of his usual expensive boots. He looked different, softer somehow and casual. It was strange when he wasn’t wearing clothes which stuck to him like a second skin, but it wasn’t a bad look exactly. Harry cleared his throat. “Also I purposefully wore fancy clothes before to annoy you.”

Louis let out a loud, surprised laughter before clamping his hands on his mouth. Harry looked embarrassed, face going red as he picked up his bag. He walked hurriedly to the door.

“And I do like that our feud is over so my legs can breathe,” he said before letting the door shut behind him.

Louis eventually calmed enough to stop laughing, wiping the tears and shook his head fondly. Harry was ridiculous and it was decided. But Louis had been equally ridiculous, he thought as he dug through his yet unopened bag. He pulled out his tightest pair of jeans, sniffing in the detergent and kissing the fabric.

“I missed you so much,” he told it. “I’m going to wear you for a week now or more I don’t know.”

The thing was that Louis had been wearing tracksuits for the past month and a half too, just to spite Harry. He loved them, loved matching them up as well but he liked his skinny jeans the same amount, which he didn’t wear after the first party he attended. He had been dying to wear his normal clothes again. And pulling on his jeans again felt good, as did his sweaters.

That night, during their usual nightly talk, Louis decided to confess the same.

“Harry,” he called, knowing Harry was sleepy enough after Louis’ long ramble. His roommate hummed in response, barely moving on his bed. Louis debated over his decision, watching his friend breathe. “I have a confession. I love skinny jeans as well but I just wore tracksuits to spite you after you said you didn’t like sportswear.”

Silence reigned for all of ten seconds before Harry sat up in his bed, head turned towards Louis.

“What?” he asked loudly. Louis couldn’t see his face clearly but he could only imagine the flabbergasted expression he would be sporting, the one which he always thought made Harry look like a confused frog. “Wait a few seconds, head rush. But really, you were doing the same thing as me yet laughed at me this morning?”

“Well,” he said, shrugging as he turned onto his back. He was smiling while Harry scoffed.

“You gave that big speech about sportswear being the most fashionable thing and you go around and say you don’t like them.” Harry hummed judgingly before he fell back onto his bed. “You’re a fraud.”

“I still stand by what I said, Harry,” Louis said, closing his eyes. “And I never said I hate sportswear, just right now I’m tired of it. I’m trying not to act like I’m gloating but tracksuits are already back in style.”

Harry hummed disbelievingly and then quietened down. The next morning he did check and found that indeed they were back. Louis sat beside him, waggling his eyebrows and saying ‘I told you so’ without actually saying it. Harry called him a hipster in return, since he had been wearing tracksuits before they came in style. Louis had guffawed, as his hands roamed over the fabric of his jeans. He really did miss.

**

“Why do you have to eat a banana like that,” Louis asked, this time laughing as Harry pushed the top half the banana into his mouth. Harry was sitting beside him now with Louis leaning his head on his hand to look at him. He saw Harry frown around it, looking a bit like an upset toddler as he pulled it out and pouted. Louis laughed again, shaking his head fondly at the sight. Probably he’d never stop wondering and ribbing him over his weird way of eating the fruit.

“Eat like what?” Harry asked, before nibbling slowly on the said fruit. His eyes were wide and innocent, as if he really didn’t know how it looked. Louis smiled before aiming a glare at someone over Harry’s shoulder who was staring at him.

“Like you’re giving the banana head,” Niall explained, laughing wildly and making Louis look away from the guy. Creep, he thought before looking at Niall’s red face. Liam stayed uninvolved, although the corner of his lips twitched into a smile. Harry was still pouting, a little bit oblivious and upset. “It’s indecent, man. You look like you’re some blowjob queen.”

“Hey,” Louis protested, before putting a finger on his lips to shush his friend. He knocked Harry’s ankle under the table, making him smile just a little. “Niall, only I can tease him now. But also Harry, he isn’t wrong.”

“It’s how I eat,” Harry insisted, pouting at his half eaten banana before pouting at Louis. He linked their ankles under the table, and Louis moved to ruffle his hair.

“I know babe,” he said, smiling as he twirled one of Harry’s long strands of hair. One of his friends from the other side of the table coughed, pointedly. Louis turned around to send him a glare. “You got a problem there, Payne?”

“Nope, not at all.”

**

“Louis I have to ask you something,” Harry said, interrupting Louis where he had gone on a tangent on a topic he didn’t even remember anymore. At Harry’s words, Louis turned on his side, squinting to study his friend’s posture and what he might be implying. Harry wasn’t looking at him, rather looking up at the ceiling. He was worrying his lower lip even now, which meant he was nervous. Louis knew him too well by now. “You know how last weekend you fell sick and Niall and Liam were out seeing LA?”

“Distinctively.”

“Tomorrow is Saturday again,” he said softly, almost missed if not for it being quiet. Louis frowned, unable to understand what his roommate was getting to. Tomorrow was Saturday indeed, a week after they had become friends.

“Is it like some first week anniversary of our friendship thing?”

Harry snorted, before turning over to face Louis again. His eyes were glinting as they reflected the moonlight. “I was asking if you would like to go see around Los Angeles. With me.”

“Oh.”

Last week Louis hadn’t been planning on going, feeling sick or otherwise. He knew he had a while to get acquainted with the city, four years more like. It wasn’t as if he needed going anywhere but a few blocks around campus, so he had been in no rush unlike the others. But there in the dark, with Harry’s hopeful eyes staring him down, as he went on in rambles, he didn’t mind.

“Yeah it’s no pressure. I know the city well and I can...”

“Yeah, I’ll love to,” Louis said, cutting off Harry. He chuckled as he heard Harry’s sigh of relief, smiling at his silhouette. “After all, you have been living in the city for a long time, right?”

Harry stilled before sheets rustling as he moved jerkily. “I have been, yeah. I’ll be a good guide, I promise. It won’t be those tourist spots this time, that will be for later. I’ll take you to my favorite places, like oh my favorite yogurt joint!”

Louis chuckled at his enthusiasm. “You’ve already sold me on it, Harold. Lay easy on the charm please.”

“And I’ll bring along my fancy car for you!” Harry added excitedly and giggled. He knew Harry was rich, knew he owned a big closet full of clothes at his sister’s place, where he stayed until the school year began. He didn’t have a doubt that Harry would own more than one car, especially one that he would refer to as ‘the fancy one’. It was cute, Louis thought, smiling wider.

“Is that car of yours pink with sparkles or something? Is that why you call it ‘the fancy one’?”

“No,” he scoffed. “Although I wish. No this car of mine is white, bright and flashy. You’ll love it.”

“What makes you say that?”

“You like plain, white stuff,” Harry said, giggling again before quietening down. They didn’t talk after that, Harry having falling asleep soon. Louis rolled his eyes fondly before falling asleep to the sound of his snores.

**

As Harry had asked, Louis woke up early that morning. He was nowhere to be seen but he had left a note, saying he’d be back in an hour. So Louis showered, before taking his sweet time shaving. The legs of his jeans were wet as he walked back, making him remember just why he didn’t dress up in the communal. He was drying his hair with his towel, opening the door simultaneously with his toiletries bag tucked into his side. He was surprised to find his two friends waiting for him instead of his roommate but he didn’t let it show. He nodded at them, faintly wondering why they were up before nine, as he threw his towel aside. He ran his fingers gently through his hair, frowning at the dampness. His friends kept mum even as he rummaged through his bag for deodorant.

“Are you seriously not going to take the bait?” Liam asked finally. His voice was void of emotions, but there was an underlying disappointment to it. Louis turned towards them, finding deep frowns on both their faces. “Are we not talking about this, then?”

“Talking about what?” he asked, standing up. He was confused by their line of question, as he sprayed deodorant all over himself. Liam wrinkled his nose at the smell but didn’t break the stare either. Louis threw the bottle back into his bag, zipping it up before picking up his towel to dry his hair again.

“About the two of you abandoning us,” Niall answered instead, pointing an accusing finger at him. Liam’s lips twisted down but he nodded and the two of them acting like a team. Louis wanted to laugh at them as he remembered the previous times they had done this. The last time it had been to tell Louis to get his shit together and talk to Harry, and now they wanted him to stop talking. Or something along that line. “And we want to come around LA with you two!”

“Oh,” Louis said, chuckling as he shook his head. Was this all then? Them wanting to join in with Harry and Louis? And there he thought it was something serious so... good to know. “Is this about you two wanting to see LA?”

“No,” Liam said, while Niall beside him said ‘yes’ at the same time. Liam frowned at him before sighing and rolling his eyes. “Yeah that too. It’s like the two of you have formed a team and are forgetting about us. We don’t like it.”

“It’s been a week, Payno.”

“A long, lonely week,” Niall exclaimed, a touch dramatic. He jutted out his bottom lip, eyes wide and pleading. Louis almost laughed.

“I don’t mind the two of you tagging along,” he said instead, splaying his fingers over his chest. He mirrored Niall’s wide-eyed look in a bid to look innocent and charming as well. And he really didn’t mind, was the thing. But yeah, he had forgotten about the two of them too so he felt a little guilt. Louis sighed at his friends’ imploring but hopeful gazes directed at him, shaking his head. “See, you will have to check with Harry, alright?”

“What with Harry?”  The door opened again, and in popped the boy in question. He had a bright grin on his face, eyebrows raised as he looked on. He started by looking questioning at the two boys on his bed, who had now directed their pleading gazes at him. Then Harry looked at Louis, his smile growing wide and giving way to surprise. He leaned on the doorframe, giving the blue-eyed boy an obvious onceover before tilting his head to a side. “Ooh someone is dressed rather fancy. Gucci, Louis?”

“Oh this old thing?” Louis said, scoffing loudly and waving his hands. The thin, Gucci sweater he was wearing was a gift from his mom, given right before he left for LA. She had insisted he’d need it, for some reason and he knew he wouldn’t. But while going through his clothes today he had thought why not, and picked it to wear. It was probably from the spring collection of this year and Harry probably was certainly aware of it. It was evident by the raising of his thin eyebrows and smirk. “It’s nothing. But hey, what's with all the silk?”

“I just like silk,” he justified, pointing towards his white, silk shirt which he had taken pains to button all the way up. He was once again in his skinny jeans, after having declared a few days ago that he’d never be back in them again. His hair was left loose, pushed back with his aviators and he was grinning. “But I like your sweater too, suits you. So are we ready to go?”

“No,” Niall yelled suddenly, making three head turn towards them with varying range of surprise. He cleared his throat, cheeks coloring at the attention but he stood up, stepping closer towards Harry. He placed his hands on his hips, puffing up his chest. “We aren’t ready to go. In fact, why aren’t we invited?”

Liam nodded weakly along, even if he was sit sat on the bed. “We would have loved a tour again.”

“Oh,” he said, the brightness of his face dimming. He blinked, fingers patting his hair as he bit on his lip. “I didn’t know you guys wanted to join. I just assumed... I brought my other car around today, for driving. And it only has two seats. I’m sorry?”

“Just how fancy is this car now, Harold,” Louis teased, remembering Harry’s comment from the previous night. Harry let go of his lip at that, giving him a small smile before looking back at their friends.

“I’m sorry, guys,” he repeated, looking apologetic as well. He played with his rings, lifting his shoulder in a half shrug. “I planned this whole day today concerning two people because I thought you two wouldn’t want to and... will it be fine if I took you guys along next time?”

Niall deflated, shaking his head with a small smile. Louis could only assume he was smiling, since he couldn’t see the boy. “That’s alright if it’s planned. But you better hold up to your promise of next time. You have fun.”

He turned to give Louis and exaggerated wink, making Louis all the more confused. He threw the towel he had still held on to, on the bed, and ruffled his hair.

“Have fun,” Liam added standing up. He was grinning and Harry was grinning back at him. “But we want to see this fancy car, alright?”

“Sure,” Harry said, dimpling. He turned to Louis. “So are we ready this time?”

Louis chuckled, shaking his head. He grabbed his jacket and walked towards the door. “So we are. Let’s go.”

“Hell yeah,” Niall cheered as he followed them to Harry’s car. Harry chuckled at the enthusiasm, letting his friend run ahead before jogging behind him. Liam smiled as he threw an arm over Louis’ shoulder.

“So is this like a date?” he whispered, making Louis frown in confusion. “I’m just asking since you know... his words?”

“About driving around the city?”  He purposely didn’t look at his friend, instead looking at Harry’s back.

“Oh Louis,” he murmured condescendingly before he went quiet. Louis didn’t prod him for the meaning of it, knowing it wasn’t something he would want to get into right now anyway.

Ten minutes later and they were in still campus, standing in front of Harry’s car and feeling varying emotions.

Louis had his arms crossed over his eyes as he narrowed his eyes at the car and then Harry. Niall had been fawning over the thing, talking quickly and excitedly about the car with Harry, who looked like he enjoyed it. Liam was nodding along, while sitting in the seat of the car and touching the dashboard. The three of them looked excited, but Louis was still reeling from the surprise of it.

When Louis had heard Harry say the word ‘fancy car’, he had assumed it would be fancy for the eye. Like Harry’s clothes, which were colorful and ‘in your face’ type of fancy. But this car, wasn’t that. It was one of those models which looked straight out of some black and white movie, and the expensive kind as well. From the symbol in the front Louis knew it was a Mercedes, even if he knew nothing much about cars. It was pure white, as Harry had told him it would be and not glittery, like what Louis had assumed it would be. It had an elongated front and indeed seated only two. It was posh, expensive but most of all, it had no roof. Now that was what had prompted Louis’ surprised reaction to the thing. It was a bloody convertible.

“Mercedes Benz,” Niall had corrected when Louis had said the same, as if it made any difference to him. He looked offended when Louis had called it a ‘convertible’, before petting the car reverently. Harry grinned at him, before looking over at Louis with a smirk, one eyebrow raised slightly. “It’s such a rare model as well.”

“It’s the 1966 one,” Harry explained to Louis, as if it made any difference to him. He had said the year of it twice already, both the time making Niall exclaim and gush. He seemed to be in love with it already and Louis was close to suggesting that Harry should take him instead. It wasn’t as if Louis didn’t like the car, it was beautiful he could appreciate that, but he didn’t get the unnecessary gushing over it. But the twinkle in Harry’s eyes at every compliment, well that was certainly beautiful to him. “Do you like it Lou? I named it Olivia, like ‘I love ya’. Get it?”

“Of course.” Louis snorted, shaking his head fondly before he finally stepped closer to the vehicle. He could see the passersby shoot the car an appreciative look before going their way. Louis pressed his palm against the smooth surface of the vehicle, under the watchful, questioning eye of his roommate. “She’s a beauty alright. Just not as fancy as I had expected.”

“What’s more fancy than a Mercedes?”

“I don’t know.” He shrugged, finding Liam watching him carefully. “I don’t know much about cars, alright. But I know you and I thought you’d have a glittery car, or at least some exotic color.”

Harry laughed freely, throwing his head back and Louis bit down on his grin at the sight. “I wish Louis, but it’s just a posh car was all. It was a gift from my dad, who actually just told me to choose whichever model I wanted and I really wanted this one. Besides, white is a beautiful color.”

“It is,” Louis agreed. “It’s a classy one.”

Harry hummed in response while Liam got out of the car. He walked around the back and stood right beside Louis. Louis was still observing the car, hand patting his hair absently as his eyes fell on the folded roof.

“But should we really travel around the city in this?” he asked, making Niall gasp loudly.

“Why don’t you want to?” he asked, being more dramatic than usual as he clutched his chest. Louis rolled his eyes at him before turning to watch the confusion in Harry’s eyes. “I’d kill someone to get to ride in this, and by someone I mean you.”

“Why don’t you want to?” Harry asked softly, eyes flitting over his face. His eyes were carefully blank, lips turned down in a sad pout and Louis sighed. His fingers were running through his hair, feeling the dried tips underneath his fingers and worrying. He was still eying the roof warily, with it being his only problem at the moment. “Don’t you want to go with me?”

“No,” Louis said immediately, snapping his eyes back to his roommate. Harry looked vaguely hurt and confused as he tilted his head to a side in question. His fingers were fiddling with his rings again, doubting himself probably. Louis squeezed his roommate’s biceps in assurance. “It’s not that it’s just.”

“Are you worried she’s going to break down?” Harry asked, eyes wide in panic as he stepped closer. Louis shook his head jerkily, lips parting. “Because she won’t. She’s sturdier than she looks. And she’s not that old, I take her for regular maintenance too and –”

“Harry no,” he said, chuckling and shaking his head. It didn’t stop Harry though.

“Is it because you’ll get a tan?” Harry asked, talking quicker than usual. He reached for the glove compartment, riffling through the contents quickly. “I have sunscreen here you can apply and –”

“Harry!” he said loudly as he clutched his shoulder and tried pulling him back. It made Harry stop immediately, as he worried his bottom lip and looked back. Louis wanted to laugh, but more than that he wanted to explain himself. He didn’t know if he should, he thought as he eyed the roof again. Liam caught his eye knowingly before he snorted, shaking his head. “I just.”

“He’s just worried about his hair, Harry,” Liam exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. Louis’ cheeks colored as he fiddled with his fringe again.

“I am not!” he protested, but the effect was ruined since he was trying to pet his hair. He curled his fists and let it fall by his sides. He sniffed petulantly, looking down at his feet and feeling the blush crawl up his cheek. “I don’t care about my hair, come on.”

“No Louis, you’re vain.”

“Oh do shut up Liam.”

He looked up to check on Harry, who had been surprisingly quiet. He had his head tilted to a side, eyes darting all over Louis’ face in a quiet concern. The wind had picked up, making his hair fly lightly along as he pushed a stray strand behind his ear. “Are you really worried about that?”

Louis cleared his throat, absently playing with his fringe again. He didn’t like to accept his vanity, but he knew when it came to his hair he was a little fussy. He didn’t take good care of his hair and it had grown long enough to be prone to falling into his eyes. Louis didn’t like when the wind made a mess of it and made it stick out oddly. But then, he also didn’t like whenever someone ruffled his hair which he already allowed Harry to do occasionally. So why not, he thought as he shook his head and smiled. “No I don’t.”

“You’re sure, Lou?” he asked, smiling slightly. Louis shook his head again, surer than before and Harry’s smile widened. “Okay but I’ll just say that you look beautiful with messy hair as well. Actually, you look cute in the mornings when your hair is rumpled.”

“Thanks Harry,” Louis said, cheeks coloring at the compliment. Liam made an odd sound, which both of them didn’t heed to. Louis ran his fingers gently over his hair, as he walked over to the passenger’s seat. He paused, fingers clutched to the door and tilted his head. “So are we going then?”

“Oh yes,” Harry said, nodding to himself as he snapped out of his daze. He shot Louis a bright grin as he shooed Niall from the door and slid into his seat. He combed his fingers through his hair as he waited for Louis to sit down as well before pulling it into a bun. Louis watched his tongue poke out in concentration as he tied it before checking himself in the mirror. Louis smiled fondly before he looked away. Niall was giving the two of them a strange, knowing look while Liam looked as if he was trying to solve a puzzle. He didn’t try to figure out the meaning of either expression, knowing it won’t lead to any good.

Harry waved them goodbye enthusiastically, while Louis followed suit even if half-heartedly. Niall let out a whistle while Liam shushed him as they pulled out of campus and were soon on the street. As the car picked up speed, Louis’ hair started flying all over his face and into his eyes. It had been barely two minutes, he thought, groaning internally.

“My hair,” he shrieked, as he pried off his hair away from his forehead. It was no use, since his hair managed to slip through his fingers and fall right back into his eyes. “My hair is a mess right now. And right now I wish I had one of your stupid bandanas.”

“I have one,” Harry chirped happily as he grinned. He kept one had on the steering wheel as the other rummaged through the glove compartment. He frowned when he couldn’t find it. “I know I kept it in this just...”

“Harry eyes on the road!”

“Oh do relax and oh here it is!”  He managed to pull out a silky, olive green scarf and grinned at Louis. At Louis’ glare, he rolled his eyes and averted his gaze back to the road while pushing the scarf towards him. He caught the flapping material tightly between his fingers, fingers brushing ever so slightly in the process. He couldn’t be too sure but Harry gasped, keeping his eyes on the road. Louis pushed back his hair, before trying to tie his fringe back with the scarf. He found himself unsuccessful in getting back all of his hair, huffing and grunting at his failed attempts. He almost gave up at his seventh attempt and haphazardly tying it somehow, before glaring at his friend when he giggled.

“Why couldn’t you given it to me before?” Louis asked, trying to tuck the remaining strands while squinting.

“Where would be the fun in that,” Harry teased, waggling his eyebrows at him before looking away.

“Asshole,” he muttered under his breath, but fondly. Louis smiled at the street, pointedly looking away from Harry. He didn’t find himself too upset with him, rather was endeared by his roommate. Times change, he thought, shaking his head.

**

Louis had more fun that he had thought he would have being a tourist.

He hadn’t been all that interested in travelling around cities, especially not LA. But Harry made it fun somehow and Louis found himself laughing more. Harry didn’t take him to any tourist spots, keeping his had promised. Rather he drove around them, pointing at the crowds and naming the place which Louis, more often than not, missed. He was a calm driver, even though he had a tendency to take his hands off the wheel while pointing towards a spot. Louis would yell at him until he looked ahead, before hiding a smile from him. He was smiling at Harry’s long-winded rambles, and expressive side profile while missing the city around him. He was enjoying more of Harry than the city, he realized an hour into the drive and he didn’t quite mind either. Harry was fun.

As the sun started to rise overhead, Harry suddenly realized it was lunchtime. He squeaked, pressing a hand to his stomach at the realization. And they were famished, having eaten nothing since the burger they got from the drive-through.

“Why didn’t you tell me it is past one?” Harry asked as he parked the car. Louis looked around and found the street almost empty, with only a few people walking on the sidewalk. They didn’t cast them a glance, as they walked with their heads ducked and headphones on. Before he could get out, Harry hurried to the other side to open the door for him, one hand raised to stop his comments. “I’m a gentleman so don’t even try to object. Besides, aren’t you hungry as well?”

Louis’ stomach chose that exact moment to growl, making both of them pause in their movements. “Clearly,” he said, giving his stomach a pointed look before laughing. Harry joined in, placing his hand on the small of Louis’ back to get them moving down the street. “So where are we going, H?”

“You’ll see,” Harry mused mysteriously, eyes flitting at the shops beside him before steering him to a side. They stood in front of a small green door which was easily missable but that's where they were headed, Louis thought as Harry pushed it open. It felt like walking into the eighties, since that was the theme. Louis raised his eyebrows at him. “It’s one of my favorite and underrated restaurants. And no, don’t you call me a hipster because I am not one.”

“Wasn’t going to say a thing,” Louis said, raising his hands in a surrender motion even as his eyes twinkled and said otherwise. Harry shook his head but his lips curled up in a small smile. He knew every worker by their name, greeting them cheerily and having small talks. He had a favorite table in there as well, situated right underneath the lights which he claimed cast the perfect glow. Louis found it all endearing, as he placed his head upon his hands. “So I’m assuming you’ll be ordering for us as well?”

“Correct,” Harry said, grinning so wide that his eyes formed into tiny slits. He ordered them two different dishes, which sounded pretentious but were delicious. They shared their meal, and Louis found himself not minding one bit when Harry’s fork would launch into his dish. It seemed like a date, as Liam’s words echoed back. Especially when Harry insisted he would pay for both of them, batting away Louis’ attempts at handing over his credit card. “No Lou, I invited you out today. And since I’m the richer one, I don’t mind paying one bit.”

Louis shook his head, drawing his hand back and letting him live his delusion. This time Louis led them out, with Harry leaning into his side as they walked alongside to his car. And then, Harry took them out on the Pacific Coast Highway, proclaiming that he’d drive them beside the ocean since Louis hadn’t seen the ocean in his life. It was an exaggeration on Harry’s part, so Louis teased him right back. His eyes were trained on Harry, with the backdrop of the coast and it looked beautiful.

Soon enough, fat water droplets fell from the sky as it began drizzling lightly. Louis giggled happily as he wiped the water from his face, while Harry let out a little curse. Louis closed his eyes, looking up at the falling rain and smiled. But the other wasn’t so impressed and slowly the rain stopped falling on his face and Louis frowned. He opened his eyes again to glare at the offending roof which was now overhead before directing it to his companion.

“I was having fun!” he complained, crossing his arms over his chest. “Pull the roof back down. I need to get wet!”

“Louis, as cute as you are when you do that,” Harry started, sighing heavily and looked at him for a few seconds. Louis huffed in protest, blowing the strand of hair which had escaped his scarf. Harry found it amusing as he smiled, but looked back at the road. “I can’t let the insides of my car get wet as well. I’m sorry.”

And he did look sorry as he said, lips drawing into a pout. So Louis cut his acting and sighed, pressing his nose forlornly against the window and watched the rain outside. “It’s fine then. But where are we heading now?”

“I was thinking we’ll go to my sister’s place?” Harry offered, lifting the end of his sentence which made it sound like a question. He gave Louis a sheepish look, which he saw reflected in the window, while he rubbed the back of his neck. Louis could feel the nervous energy come off him, which puzzled him a little so he turned. “Is that alright with you?”

“Hey if it’s alright with your sister then,” he said, grabbing Harry’s hand which had been drumming on his thigh. It made him smile softly and blush, but he didn’t move his hand away instead letting it stay. Louis didn’t move his hand either, as they drove for another ten minutes along the ocean side. He looked outside at the rain, wanting to whine since he would love to get wet. He could have if his friend wasn’t such a snob about his car, but then he understood it as well. Harry soon pulled over in one of the houses and Louis barely had time to take it in its entirety and react.

Now see, for some stupid reason Louis had assumed Harry’s sister’s house would be an apartment in the middle of the city, or the northern half. He had also assumed it would be lavish but small, since Gemma wouldn’t let Harry stay often. But he was proven wrong when he stepped out, shielding his eyes against the rain. Gemma’s house was in fact a big mansion in Malibu overlooking the ocean. Of course.

“Harry no,” he groaned, looking up at the rain. The sky was dark overhead as the rain fell in a steady pace and Louis wanted to groan as loudly as he could. He didn’t actually go through with it, just pushed his soppy fringe aside and walked over to Harry’s side. Harry had been getting out of the car with an impish look so Louis just narrowed his eyes at him.

“Harry yes.” He slammed the door before jiggling his car keys and walking towards him to link their arms together. He unexpectedly dragged him towards the door. “Isn’t this house beautiful? Brings me at peace which is why I love being here.”

“Obviously,” he murmured, shaking his head and letting himself be dragging by the prancing unicorn that was Harry. He let go of him when they had reached the door, reaching into his pockets to remove another set of keys. He opened the door with a flourish, and let himself in with Louis following behind. He could only gape at the sight of the huge living room. “Wow.”

“Welcome to our humble abode,” Harry exclaimed, spreading out his arms as he spun. The two of them toed off their shoes and left them in the corner where Harry pointed. Louis looked around while Harry walking in ahead and disappeared into an adjoining room. The place was immaculate and stylish as one would expect it to be, in a theme of white and blue. It looked like a place right out of a magazine brochure that his mom sometimes went through. There was a fake fireplace in one side around which were two comfy armchairs and there was a big, ceiling to floor window on one wall which led out into the balcony. Everything was sharp and homey, along with weird, mismatched and colorful paintings decorating the walls. It looked so put together and messy at the same time that it was fascinating to look at, although not a strange sight.

“Humble, sure,” he muttered under his breath as he ran his fingers over the arm of the cream colored sofa in the smack middle of the living room.

“Do you like it then?” Harry asked as popped back in while biting into a cupcake. He offered Louis a towel to dry himself while passing a cupcake to him as well. Louis kept the towel on the sofa while biting hungrily into the cupcake, stomach rumbling quietly. Harry laughed at it, running back into what Louis assumed was the kitchen and bringing two more cupcakes. He looked at Louis anxiously as he ate, having finished his own quickly. “Do you like the place?”

Louis nodded, swallowing hurriedly. “Yeah yeah it’s massive.”

Harry laughed, untangling his bun. He shook out his hair behind him, closing his eyes as he combed through it gently. It was a mesmerizing sight as always, Louis thought, watching his movements and feeling fondness inside. As Harry finished with his ritual he opened his eyes again, looking back at Louis with an expectant smile.

“You never told me the house is in fucking Malibu!” Louis added.

“And you never asked me where it was,” Harry stated, a shit-eating grin on his face. His eyes were twinkling, standing in way that had the window right behind him. He looked bright, in contrast to the rapidly darkening sky outside which spread behind him. Louis felt something flutter in his chest, a strange feeling so to distract himself he followed Harry’s suit. He untied his headscarf, shaking out his hair like Harry had before picking up the towel to dry it out. Harry was still watching him, his smile growing fonder while face softer. When he found himself caught by Louis he looked away, not being able to tame his smile. He rubbed his nose. “So want to go out in the balcony? It has a great view. I’ll bring something for you to drink, if I find that is. So be right back.”

“Fine with me,” Louis said while Harry had already taken off. He laughed and shook his head as he walked into the balcony. It was a great view, he agreed as he found himself at peace the moment he spotted the ocean. He slid the doors aside, smiling already as he breathed in the salty ocean air. He sat down on one of the reclining chair, sighing and closing his eyes. The roof overhead assured once again that he wouldn’t get drenched but the air brought in some water drops and he loved it. Louis had always wanted to live in a house facing the ocean when he was a kid, the desire gradually fading away. Right now, it had risen again. He felt at peace already, hence not hearing when someone else padded in and dropped in the chair beside him.

“Lou,” Harry whispered softly, tapping his arm to grab his attention while handing him a bottle of Corona. Louis raised his eyebrows appreciatively as he accepted it, making Harry look away as he blushed. “Well Gemma had a few bottles in the fridge so I thought why not.”

“Thanks,” he said, clinking the bottle against Harry’s and making him smile. He took a long chug out of the bottle, having missed the taste of beer in his time away from home. He kept his eyes on the distant ocean, being captivated by the waves. He almost didn’t notice the way his roommate was staring at him before looking away. “So you’ve got a pretty big house out here.”

“Yeah it was a gift,” Harry said, his tone being weird. Louis gave him a surprised look, but Harry wasn’t looking back. He was looking at the horizon, eyebrows furrowed together in frustration as he took another swig of the bottle. “My father has a habit of giving us expensive gifts to show us he loves us. You know, it’s usually a compensation of some kind. Missing important events, birthday or just to console us. So when mom died a few months back, he gifted Gemma and me a house. I don’t like to think it’s mine, so it’s Gemma’s.”

“Oh,” Louis mumbled, not used to having Harry talk so openly about his parents. In the past weeks Louis had noticed how there was some lingering tension when he talked about his parents, or downright avoided mentioning them. He had also noticed in this week how the stories he said revolved around Gemma, or her boyfriends, or their cat but never about them. He hadn’t asked, knowing it wasn’t any of his business. And now that he knew, he wasn’t sure how to go about with it. “I’m sorry.”

Harry laughed self deprecatingly, shaking his head before looking back. His expression was pained, eyes a little glassy and he was sure it wasn’t from the lager. He rubbed under his nose before pushing back his hair as he looked away, stopping mid laugh. “It’s fine, Louis. I got used to him. My parents divorced a few years back too, and the both of us were fine with it. They had major problems, mainly from my dad’s side. We lived with our mom in LA, while dad was just... out somewhere we don’t know. He sent us presents, showering us with wealth to buy our affection. It never worked but we are used to it. It’s how I get my expensive wardrobe, yeah and my cars. But I also detest my wealth sometimes. It’s like I don’t like pity offerings, yeah. I love my expensive lifestyle, and this house but I feel bitter at the same time. Gemma stopped caring about it, but I didn’t. Much.”

Harry let out a heavy sigh before chugging on the bottle. Louis hummed in response, not knowing what else to say as he peeled the label. It wasn’t as if his friend wanted a response or reassurance anyway, since he didn’t leave him any pauses to fill. He also looked sad though, so Louis reached out to squeeze his knee and left his hand there.

“And you know while we’re talking,” Harry continued suddenly, widening his eyes and Louis frowned. “I didn’t tell you the whole truth before.”

“What truth?” Louis whispered, blinking curiously. He didn’t realize how close they had leaned in until the wind blew, carrying Harry’s hair onto his face. He could see the freckles dotting his cheek and he still thought that his eyes were far apart from each other. He tucked Harry’s hair behind his ear, taking a labored breath as the pause between them stretched on. Harry was giving him a searching gaze, taking in a deep breath when Louis nodded encouragingly.

“So that day at the dorm?” he started and Louis nodded. “It was the first day I had got out my room in weeks. I had just locked myself in my room for the entirety of the summer, doing god knows what. It had been weeks and I can’t remember it all that well but I was depressed after her death and used to just stare at the walls and all. Gemma had to push me out of my room to move into a college dorm, saying how it would be better for me. She wasn’t wrong and it actually helped me get past that, you know?”

Harry chuckled again, tucking his hair behind his ear while Louis frowned. He bit his lip as he continued. “So when I walked in the room and saw you, I was in a shock. Not only did I think you were confident, I also thought you were breathtakingly beautiful. And it just made me tongue-tied and threw me off. Plus you were so nice when you spoke and I just fucked it up. God.” He blinked slowly, and Louis found himself in a trance, holding in his breath. He was processing all Harry said, and by the last sentence he was in shock. He hadn’t heard his roommate talk so quick in the time they had known each other. Also he thought Louis was beautiful? What? “You’re still so beautiful, Louis, can I kiss you?”

Louis blinked, lips parting at the surprising question Harry had asked him. Harry, who was looking at him anxiously, hopefully and also a little resigned. And since Harry had brought it up, Louis thought back to the first day when he had seen the boy. How his eyes had widened at his words, as if he didn’t believe it himself. He remembered the hesitation and he finally got what Harry had been thinking then. He had gotten it all wrong, taking his probably attraction as disgust. He felt bad about it in the retrospect, but he also had another realization in the span of the seconds which stretched. He liked Harry, and it was the first proper attraction he had felt in his life.

Harry was beautiful, objectively but he was also a nice person. He was confident and shy, unafraid to match Louis’ quips with his failed attempts. He was unabashed in his nakedness but a little ashamed about his habits. And most of all, Louis liked him with all of his quirks and would let him cuddle when he let no one else. And he wouldn’t mind kissing Harry either, or dating for that matter. It was a surprising thought, which would make him stagger back and run at any other moment but now. Without thinking twice he cupped the back of Harry’s neck and narrowed the distance between them. The moment their lips met, despite it being a little sloppy with more teeth clashing, Louis thought it was perfect.

Louis swallowed in the small squeak Harry let out, before his hands came to rest on his arms. The arms of their chairs dug into their ribs as he pulled each other close, but they didn’t mind. They moved their lips against each other unhurried, with neither of them trying to deepen it with their tongue. He felt at ease, unlike he had before with his partners and the strange fluttery feeling was back. Louis smiled as their lips parted and they pressed their foreheads together.

“Do you...” Harry started to say but was interrupted by the bang of the front door. He sighed, closing his eyes and leaning back. Louis turned to look inside, where a woman was taking off her shoes.

“Why is the car parked out front?” she yelled, shoving his heels to the side. She looked around, frowning when she didn’t find the person in question. Harry groaned, fixing his hair and looking at the living room. “Harry, are you out there?”

“Yeah,” he groaned, making her turn towards them.

Louis felt a little scared when the woman walked towards them, looking imposing as her platinum blonde hair swung side to side. She squinted at them, pushing aside the door before standing there with her hands on her hips. From a distance, one would think the siblings were as different as they could be. Their hair being different shades and so were their eyes. But Louis knew that both of them had the same mischievous grin, since Gemma was directing him with one. “And who do we have here hmm. Is it Louis?”

“That’s me,” he said, voice being a little rough. He wiped his mouth nervously while flicking his fringe to a side as he stood up. “You must be Gemma right? How did you know it was me?”

“This one talks a lot about you,” Gemma said, nodding her head towards Harry, whose cheeks were now red. He rolled his eyes at her as he stood up as well, crossing his arms over his chest. “So nice to finally meet you. Have heard a lot about you.”

“Good things I hope?”

“Actually, yes. He’s like proper smitten with you from the start. At first he was like –”

“And that's enough from you,” Harry shrieked, running between the two of them as if to stop her. The other two laughed, as Louis moved to wrap his arms from the back. “Gemma, don’t you have Michal to bother now?”

“You know he’s out,” she started, raising an eyebrow at them. She tilted her head to a side, looking innocent suddenly. “I have a lot of things to tell Louis. Although I wouldn’t mind a three course meal in exchange for my silence.”

“You know what,” he started, waggling his finger at her. Louis squeezed around the middle, making him lean back into the touch and hold Louis’ arms over his chest. “That’s totally fine. I’ll just need help with making it.”

“I’ll freshen up then,” she chirped, grinning sweetly at the two of them. “And congratulations. About time.”

Gemma winked and ran away while Harry stilled. Louis raised himself up on his tiptoes to perch his chin atop Harry’s shoulder. They fit together perfect, Louis thought. Like puzzle pieces they were. “What happened?”

“I don’t want to force you,” he said in one breath. Louis frowned, but he was unable to see Harry’s face so he squeezed his hand. “Like she’s going to be implying stuff and I don’t want you to get uncomfortable. It’s fine if you don’t want to date me, since you say you don’t like dating and I –”

“Harry,” he whispered before laughing. He turned him around so that they were looking at each other and Louis lift up Harry’s chin. He smiled fondly. “You absolute fool. You know I don’t casually date or kiss but you take it the wrong way. I absolutely want to date you, okay? If that's what you want as well.”

“Really?” he asked, grinning shyly. Louis laughed, shaking his head.

“Yup,” he said, pecking his lips before freeing himself and running back into the living room. Turning back he could still see him standing there in shock, which made Louis giggle. “Oi. So this really was a date right?”

It made Harry smile and look down at his feet. Louis got his confirmation.

A few minutes later, Gemma came down wearing casual clothing and the three of them made their way to the kitchen. After Louis spoke about his lack of cooking experience, the siblings unanimously decided he should be saddled with salad for now, or other small tasks. He was more than happy with that as he got himself a small part of the kitchen to cut the vegetables while Harry helped him with cutting the chicken breasts. His mom hadn’t let him cook much, except for a few mixing or cutting jobs. So even if the pieces were uneven, he had the speed to make it fast. But most of the time, he watched Harry.

It seemed like Harry was more enthusiastic with his sister, laughing as he worked around her. They were constantly trying to put the other down playfully, with Harry not being able to keep up and Louis adding his quips. Harry would smile widely at him while Louis winked and Gemma would pretend to gag at them. It was fun and domestic Louis thought and he wouldn’t mind doing it all again.

“So Louis,” Gemma said around a mouthful of chicken parmesan. They were sitting at the dining table now, in a separate room with too many chairs to be used. “You know the first thing he said when he stomped back home after he met you? He said, and I quote, how did you get me a roommate so perfect and I managed to fuck it up under a minute. He was so flustered, it was cute.”

“You said I had your silence!” Harry protested, pointing his fork at her. She laughed at him, making him try and fail to kick her under the table. So she just stuck her tongue out, while he pouted. “You’re a mean sister.”

“Don’t be a baby, H. And Louis, I would find him thinking about ways to softly annoy you, because according to him you look cute when you’re frustrated. And the candle ritual? Totally does that.”

“No way,” Louis gasped, leaning forward while Gemma did the same. Beside him, Harry was giving his sister a betrayed look which Louis found extremely cute. The corner of his lip tilted up. “Tell me more.”

And Gemma did tell a few more things Harry used to say, and he also used to sing ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ under his breath sometimes. It made Louis laugh as Harry huffed like a child.

“I’m so glad I kissed Louis before he could meet you,” he muttered under his breath, which elicited another round of teasing.

“So are you like boyfriends now?” she asked, eying their joined hands on top of the table. She looked between them curiously, her eyes twinkling with fondness. Harry shrugged as he scooted closer to nick the remaining salad off Louis’ plate while Louis let him.

“Official since an hour ago,” Louis said, unexpectedly pecking his boyfriend on the lips. Harry stared at him blankly before smiling and ducking his head. Gemma cooed.

“It’s so cute. I had been rooting for you, you know? Glad Harry did ask you out today.” Louis nodded at her as he smiled, and watched her face morph into something stern. “So a couple of things about Harry...”

“No Gemma,” Harry snapped, eyes warning her. Louis pretended to not hear their hushed words, finding his food too interesting. Harry managed to stop her from whatever she was saying before carrying his plate to the sink. It didn’t stop her from leaning forward to grab Louis’ hand and give him a warning look.

“Don’t break his heart alright,” she whispered, almost pleading. Louis nodded in understanding. “He’s had his heart broken several times so please. Accept him for how he is, and appreciate him.”

“Sure will Gemma,” he replied, nodding quickly. “I will appreciate him. He’s precious anyway, and I’m the same as him so.”

There was a confused furrow on her forehead before realization dawned. She gave him a private smile when Harry approached, withdrawing her hand. Harry looked between them, before shrugging it off and leaning close to Louis to ask if he wanted something. He shook his head in a no, smiling at his boyfriend.

Gemma brought out the ice cream afterwards, all of them moving to the couch. Harry and Louis occupied the sofa, while Gemma took the chair, flipping through channels quickly before settling on some romcom.

“So Louis,” Harry said, cuddling into Louis’ side as he ate his desert. Louis hummed in response, looking at his boyfriend and smiled. He looked worried, lip caught between his teeth as his gaze flitted over Louis’ face anxiously. “It’s getting pretty late.”

“I’m aware Harold,” he whispered, even though Gemma couldn’t care less. He reached to pull Harry’s lip from under his teeth.

“So we leave now, it will be past the curfew.” He paused and Louis nodded encouragingly, telling him to go on. “So I was thinking, which you feel free to say no to, alright? But I was just thinking that it isn’t as if they’ll check our rooms right. So we could just you know...”

Louis laughed, shaking his head. “Harry. Please don’t hold back.”

Harry chuckled nervously, leaning away to keep his empty bowl. Without meeting his eyes, he said, “So we could stay here, I have a spare room too. And we could go back to our dorms tomorrow. Is that okay?”

“Sure.”

“What? But you didn’t even think it through!”

Louis laughed all of a sudden, throwing his head back. Harry turned towards him, looking thoroughly confused as he pouted. His face softened as Louis continued laughing, chuckling along as well. Louis didn’t know what was so funny, but it had something to do with how flustered Harry had been and then confused. He poked his boyfriend’s cheek, a dimple forming immediately under. “Of course baby. Why would I say no to a larger bed and sound of waves in the backdrop? It’s only my dream.”

“Yeah?”

Louis nodded, scooping up the last bit of ice cream and offering the spoon to Harry. He ate it happily, grinning shyly. “You’re cute.”

“No actually the two of you are cute,” Gemma said, smiling with her eyes still intent on the movie. Harry hesitantly kissed Louis’ cheek before blushing furiously. Cute, indeed.

So Louis stayed over, getting to sleep in one of the spare rooms upstairs. He had the view of the ocean to his right, the sound of it calming him to sleep. His dreams consisted of cherry lips and bright green eyes, which incidentally also woke him up the next morning.

Harry had made breakfast the next day, of which Louis had his full. He felt rather happy on their drive back home, taking a chance to look at the city than just Harry. It was a beautiful city, Louis thought, before his eyes flit back to Harry. He had left his hair open this time, flying around him but not getting in his eyes due to the sunglasses. He looked effortlessly beautiful and Louis knew he could linger on those thoughts now, and how mushy it made him feel inside. It was a new feeling of course, and something akin to romantic love, which would a first for him. He smiled to himself, hand reaching to fix his fringe before realizing he had tied it back again.

Louis finally switched on his phone after he had switched it off god knows when, frowning he found a message from Niall. It had been from last night, asking when the two of them were headed back and then a few more when they didn’t come back. The last one was a winky face, of which he didn’t like the implication but then, well. He replied to his message from the morning, where he asked when they’d be back, saying they were in the car.

So sure enough when they arrived at their dorm, they found a waiting brunet leaning against the door.

“Where the fuck were you guys?” Niall asked, looking hassled. He ran his fingers through his hair, before narrowing his eyes at Louis. “Oh and I didn’t know you wore headscarves too.”

“That’s what happens when you have long haired in the wind,” Louis deadpanned, making Harry break into a laugh and cuddle into his side. It caught the attention of the other boys roaming in the hallway, and Niall who zeroed in on Harry’s waist, where Louis’ hand rested.

“And you two seem comfy,” he commented, looking between the two of them. A slow smirk spread over his face when Harry pressed a kiss onto Louis’ shoulder and he just smiled fondly. “Wait what exactly happened?”

“Turns out it was a date,” Louis said simply, shrugging. He pressed a kiss to Harry’s cheek. “Oh and now we’re dating.”

“He’s my boyfriend,” Harry sang, which made someone behind them whistle. Niall’s face turned comically wide at that, stilling for a few seconds before he swore loudly and indecipherably. Harry turned to Louis, smirking. “So he’s in shock?”

“Seems like,” Louis replied as he watched his friend freak out a little. He was generally happy, borderline manic as he banged on his dorm door before realizing it was open and pushed in.

“I told you there’s something, Liam. They’re dating now, just that simply. All I had to do was make them take a ride then.”

“Get the fuck off Niall I’m sleeping. God!”

**

All his life Louis had accepted the fact that he probably wouldn’t be able to love someone. It hadn’t been a problem, much. But then turned out that love was easy for him after all, especially since he had found the right person.

Technically he wouldn’t call it love just yet, since it was the early stages of their relationship. With Hannah he hadn’t felt anything at all, while with Nico it had been fleeting. But every time Louis made Harry laugh, it felt like the beginning of love in his heart.

So over the course of two weeks, Louis got to learn a lot about his boyfriend and what made up Harry Styles. He didn’t like to speak about their relationship or where it was headed, even if he talked about everything else. Harry talked about his thoughts late at night while Louis relayed him yet another childhood story. About how his mother would be busy and he would have to take care of his siblings. Harry would talk about how much he loved and missed his mother, before getting a little choked up.

They fell into the relationship headfirst and quick, getting very comfortable around each other. Louis knew they should sit down and talk since verbal communication was a must but Harry seemed reluctant. So he gave him time, and didn’t push him into any discussion. Instead he studied Harry a little more. How he loved referring to Louis as ‘Lou’, dragging out the word depending on the situation. Also he realized Harry was a little clingy and loved cuddling, was really domestic and loved playing the guitar.  He found it due to three separate incidents really.

~~

_“Lou,” Harry whispered into the dark, three days after they had made their relationship official. Louis had stopped talking a few minutes ago, having assumed that his boyfriend’s silence meant he was on the brink of falling asleep. But no, he was awake and apparently in the need to talk about something, from the way he stretched the word to only two seconds. Louis blinked at the ceiling, waiting for Harry to continue. He knew it would some random, wandering thought and he was proven right. “What if we just push both our beds to the centre of the room? Like that we will have one big bed and both of us can cuddle.”_

_Louis sighed, closing his eyes. He didn’t cuddle anyone who wasn’t his sisters. And even then, he didn’t know how he could cuddle Harry while trying to sleep but the latter clearly didn’t think the same. Harry needed cuddles at all times, wanted to touch all the time. The development would confuse their friends so that was a bonus. “It’s been three days, Harold. We’re not there yet.”_

_“Of course we are!” he insisted, probably pouting now as well. Louis didn’t say anything so Harry whined. “Please come on. It will help me sleep better, if you held me in your arms.”_

_“You’re so cheesy, Harry,” Louis said, smiling at the ceiling because of course. He pulled up his sheets up to his neck. “Also you’re the bigger one. Remember how you said I was tiny?”_

_“Yeah but in a cute way,” Harry defending, whining loudly now. “I like being the little spoon so cuddle me please.”_

_“Go to sleep, Harry.”_

_He turned onto his side, facing the wall. With each ‘please’ Louis felt his defense crumbling until he didn’t remember why he ever resisted. He had grown used to Harry’s cuddles now, so it would be the same laying down right. Yet the fact that he liked being the little spoon was making him smile like a loon, so he was thankful it was the dark._

_For two days then Harry repeated the same conversation, huffing when Louis told him to go to sleep. But on the third day, in all his endearment, Louis missed Harry’s legs trudging towards him. He only realized Harry’s plan when he collapsed on top of him, limbs flailing everywhere. Louis squawked, shifting under his weight until Harry was on the end of the bed and Louis flattened to the wall._

_“Harry!”_

_“Spoon me please,” Harry insisted stubbornly, eyebrows furrowed together and lip jutting out. From up close, Louis couldn’t see his face all that clearly, but he could feel his resistance fade as well. He tucked Harry’s hair behind his ear, trailing his fingers down his cheek as he sighed._

_“Alright turn over you big baby,” he whispered softly, voice fond even if he didn’t want it to be. Harry smiled widely, kissing Louis lightly on the lips before he turned over as instructed and shifted ahead. He made himself smaller, so Louis could comfortable spoon him. He kissed the back of his head and smiled. “Goodnight.”_

_“Goodnight. I love you.”_

_“I love you too,” he replied, meaning it for the very first time in his life. And he didn’t freak out or have to think too much about it before he replied. He knew what his heart wanted. And Louis loved it when Harry giggled and turned to kiss him._

_It was a welcome surprised when he realized he didn’t mind waking up next to Harry. Not so much when he saw Niall had somehow got in and was smiling at them adoringly. Niall was a pest, he was._

~~

_“Lou, your side of the room is still messy,” Harry said the minute Louis entered their dorm. The latter sighed heavily, having been tired from his classes and walked around his clothes to fall face first on his bed. He groaned into the stiff mattress, shutting his eyes. He could hear Harry’s displeased tutting from the other side but he ignored it. “Don’t sleep with your shoes on, babe it will spoil the sheets.”_

_Louis lifted his head to give Harry a blank look. “If it bothers you so much then do it yourself. I can’t move for another few hours.”_

_“Fine if that's what you want,” he replied, setting aside his laptop with a frown. He threw his blankets aside, tying his hair in a messy bun and Louis watched, feeling a little puzzled and mesmerized. Harry then surprisingly walked over to him, gently removing the shoes from his feet. If Louis wasn’t so shocked he would have pulled back his legs because no, he didn’t mean Harry do that. “I’m keeping them by your bed alright? So now I’ll start on picking up your clothes.”_

_Louis rolled over to his side to watch his boyfriend crouch and pick up the various clothing items strayed on the floor. He hadn’t intended to leave them all there, but he had been in a hurry the previous night and forgot to pick them up again. He was going to pick it up later in the evening but then Harry was... picking them up. He was humming under his breath, smiling to himself. “Haz, babe, you don’t have to. I was kidding. I can pick it up myself.”_

_“Oh no I like doing it,” he said, standing up with an armful of Louis’ clothes. He threw them on his side of the bed, sorting through them calmly. “I like taking care of someone, or just arranging. Also, which of them should be thrown for laundry? Oh you know what, I’ll throw them all. I was thinking of doing my laundry so I’ll do yours as well. I love doing laundry. Wait should I?”_

_“Do you really love?” Louis asked skeptically. He rested his head on top of his palm as he watched Harry’s anxious face at the last question. His hesitancy washed away with a radiant smile as he nodded and went back to sorting through, swaying his hips to the song he hummed. Louis laughed softly, falling onto his back. “Thanks, love. I’m lazy anyway so, great help.”_

_“I know you are,” he hummed. He laughed softly and Louis found his smile widening by the sound of it. “Oh and I also want to rearrange your clothes. Maybe color wise? Or categorize it! This will be fun. But will it be alright with you?”_

_“Sure whatever you want, babe,” he murmured, shutting his eyes. He was pleasantly surprised when Harry padded over to kiss him on the lips, giving him a radiant smile as he sashayed back. He was really cute, Louis thought and his stomach fluttered with the now familiar butterflies._

~~

_The following weekend, Harry went back to the Malibu house to exchange the cars. Louis didn’t go along, since he was buried in coursework in the library. When he went back to his room, he saw Harry had brought his guitar back with him. The thing looked vintage looking with multiple stickers on it and it was laid on his bed. When Louis returned to their dorm, with Niall and Liam on his heel, he was surprised by the sight of it._

_“Lou, is it alright if I play?” Harry asked, dragging the first word for about five seconds. Louis nodded, suspecting him of mischief, as he went to sit by his side. The other two automatically took the other bed, with Niall grinning wildly at them. He had grown less manic from the last week, after the novelty wore off but he was still being strange. Liam had taken to giving them a fond look whenever they did something cute. Harry started playing a familiar tune, closing his eyes as he hummed along to the lyrics. Louis frowned as he tried to place it but Niall beat him to the chase._

_“Fleetwood Mac, Leather and Lace?” Niall asked, leaning forward excitedly. Harry nodded and grinned. He glanced at Louis, smiling slyly before he started playing another, very familiar tune. Louis groaned, pressing his forehead against Harry’s shoulder and the latter giggled. He kept playing the tune, mixed along with his laughter. “Wait I don’t recognize this one?”_

_“It’s Oasis, Ni,” Louis mumbled, making Louis snort loudly._

_“Only his favorite band,” Liam teased, making Louis groan again as he remembered the poster._

_“I’ve started to like their songs now, Louis,” Harry said, laughing when Louis let out an exaggerated groan. He started playing Wonderwall, now loudly singing along with it. He had a great singing voice, deep and sultry and Louis was smiling but he couldn’t let the teasing going on any longer. So he poked his boyfriend’s side, making him giggle and stop his singing. He tickled him some more, until Harry screamed about his guitar breaking._

~~

Harry was also breathtakingly lovely, beautiful and most of all, kind at heart. He was someone you could not get tired of. But also, he was nervous all the time about something. Neither of them had initiated anything sexual still, content with making out now and then and sleeping in the same bed sometimes, whenever Harry wished for it. That was their relationship, their thing.

But Harry would freeze up whenever Niall would imply something about the sexual component, or lack thereof, in their relationship. Niall, good-heartedly, would joke about not hearing enough noise from their dorm since they’re a couple now, and Harry would tense up. Louis would immediately grab for his boyfriend’s hand and sass his friend and tell him gently to back off. Louis hadn’t bothered telling their friends that they weren’t fucking, since even the two of them didn’t have that discussion yet. But hopefully Harry understood his nonverbal cues, and knew that they didn’t have to care about the sexual stuff either.

December came by and the two of them got swamped with studying and exams. They would barely see each other, since Louis would sit in the library in midst of the books without distraction. And when they saw each other they’d smile, give each other a kiss or two before wordlessly going back to their work. Niall and Liam were busy with their own coursework, not coming over and they saw less of each other.

Louis still had one exam left while the other three had finished theirs, so he had taken to the library again. He tapped his fingers on his thigh, mouthing along to the words he read but they were soon wiping away from his memory. He sighed, rubbing his eyes as he took out his phone. There was a text from Harry just a few minutes ago, telling him to come back soon and that Niall and Liam were also there. He thought over it, trying to memorize again before giving up. He was sure he had read through it all and that a break was necessary. He picked up his books and walked back to his dorm to find the three of them sprawling on the floor. He greeted them, kissing Harry before sitting on the pink bed. Harry automatically shifted so he was sitting with his head between Louis’ legs, passing him a bottle of Corona he had managed to snuggle in. The three others held one as well, although it was half finished by now. Louis was half listening to their words, until their conversation shifted to Christmas and Harry jumped up a little, dislodging Louis’ hand that was sifting through his hair.

“Louis’ birthday is on Christmas eve,” Harry said, pointing his now empty bottle at Louis behind him. He grinned widely while the latter just shook his head, returning to play with Harry’s curls. “It’s coming soon.”

“Ah Christmas birthdays,” Niall remarked, burping. “Must have sucked then, celebrating your day with Jesus eh.”

“It did,” Louis said solemnly, smiling when Harry pushed his head into Louis’ hand to continue playing with his hair. “But Harry’s birthday is in February. He’s the youngest of us all.”

“He’s the baby,” Liam teased and Louis laughed along. Harry whined and pouted, making all of them laugh a little more. “But back to the original question. What are everyone’s plans for Christmas? Traditional celebration with family or flying off to someplace warm?”

“It’s a traditional Christmas for me,” Louis said, taking a huge gulp of his lager and finishing it. Without being prompted to, Harry took the bottle from his hand to place it by the floor almost as if it was instinctual. Louis smiled at him, shaking his head. “Anyway so since it’s my birthday we do this whole gift opening day for me, still. I get lots of presents, separate from my Christmas presents of course. And on the Christmas morning I’m woken up by my siblings, dragged down at eight am and forced to open more presents with them. This year I did all my shopping online, so hopefully it gets delivered. Oh and we have a family and friends bonfire, totally unconventional and unnecessary but eh.”

“Thanks for that unnecessarily long answer,” Liam deadpanned, smiling sweetly and rolling his eyes. He leaned against the bed, spreading his legs. “I just asked if you’ll be flying out somewhere because I am. We’re going to someplace sunny, which I don’t know of since I haven’t been informed of the plan.”

“Aw sucks,” Niall said, laughing as he punched Liam’s shoulder lightly. “We’ll be having a snowy Christmas as always, with playing in the snow and all that. I’ll get to meet my nephew again, so that will be fun.”

Liam hummed. “Well Harry you’ve been uncharacteristically quiet until now. What will you be doing?”

“Oh,” he said, blinking slowly as if surprised at being addressed. Louis frowned, looking at his boy and lightly knocking his knee against Harry’s shoulder to get his attention. Harry shrugged, trying to smile. “I’m doing nothing at all. Mum used to decorate the house and make delicious food and the first Christmas without her wouldn’t seem right. So we’re not doing anything at all, not even exchanging gifts. Plus Gemma will be with Michal. So I’ll be either be sleeping or lounging by the sea?”

“By the sea?” Niall asked, frowning. He hadn’t been told exactly where Harry’s house lied, and when Louis did tell him, he gasped loudly. “Holy shit you live in Malibu? When were you going to take us? And I remember you never took us for a ride around LA!”

Louis waved his hand at his friend to drop it before cupping Harry’s face and tilting it towards him. “Are you really not celebrating because it wouldn’t be a grand family day?” Harry nodded slowly and Louis huffed. He pushed his torso away from him so he could slide down on the floor and pull Harry’s into his side. “That won’t do at all, love. You’re coming with me to celebrate Christmas.”

“At your home?” Harry asked as he placed his arm around Louis’ waist. “Won’t that be too soon?”

“Sure will be,” Niall said instead. “You two haven’t even had sex yet. Or, it would be the perfect place to. You know childhood bed!”

“Not relevant Niall,” Louis told him flippantly as he rubbed circles on Harry’s back. “And darling, please come with me. Mom will love you and the more the merrier right?”

“Are you sure I won’t crowd the house?” Harry asked, eyes wide with trepidation. Louis smiled, kissing him slowly before pulling back. Harry was smiling too, cheeks turning red. “Alright if you say so.”

“So Louis is taking Harry home to meet his parents?” Liam asked, eyebrows raised.

“Louis is taking Harry to meet his parents,” Louis agreed, keeping it in third person. Harry giggled beside him, snuggling in close. They talked a little more until Louis pushed them out of the room, saying he still had to revise.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all liked it.  
> Kudos and comments are appreciated :)  
> Rebloggable post is [ here ](http://rainbowsandlovehl.tumblr.com/post/173861427933/start-a-revolution-from-my-bed-by-rainbowslovehl) so I'd love if you reblog too.


	2. Chapter Two: Visiting Home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be honest, I created a different chapter solely to add this note haha. Anyway Louis is implied to live in North California and his hometown is based around Bridgeport but then not quite. I tried my best to get the climate right of the place but if there are any inaccuracies, sorry. And Louis' friends are dicks and slightly acephobic?

Harry drummed his fingers on his thigh, being acutely aware that he was being stared at worriedly by his boyfriend. He tried running his fingers through his hair before remembering that he had tied it back and sighed. He didn’t know what to do, since his anxiety wasn’t letting him just be.

Louis had told him it was a six hour long drive. Harry and Louis had been staying at the Malibu house for the past week, spending a lot of time getting a tan and then getting wet in the short burst of rain. They were to leave Monday morning and return before New Years. So that morning, Harry had suggested they have breakfast and leaving at eight in the morning. He had been nervous, more so since it would be the first time meeting his boyfriend’s family whom he loved so much. They were important to impress and Harry didn’t trust his skills enough. He had been nervously unpacking and repacking all of his stuff the night before, until Louis held his hands and talked him into calming. It relaxed him for a few hours, after which Harry crawled into Louis’ bed and asked to be spooned. Harry didn’t know why he worried about it so much. From Louis’ stories, his family seemed to be great and loving. But then, he also did have a problem with nervous first impressions.

“Harry,” Louis called, reaching over to grasp his hand and effectively breaking him out of his nervous thoughts. He removed the earbuds, pausing the music and looked at him boyfriend. Louis looked rumpled, beanie tucked over his hair and nose scrunched up. He was wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt, just like he had been wearing on the first day. He claimed it was his travel clothes, since being relaxed was more important than looking good. Harry understood that, wanting to do the same but he did have an impression to make. So he was wearing a black button up along with (a little loose than his usual jeans) plaid pants. At least it helped his knees bend with ease. “What’s on your mind? What's worrying you right now?”

“Have I packed in my winter clothes?” Harry asked immediately, eyebrows furrowing together as he tried to remember. He looked out Louis’ window, spotting snow on the ground. Louis sighed, shaking his head while keeping his eyes on the road. “It’s snowing outside and I can’t remember if I did pack. I can’t wear your clothes, since they would two sizes too small on me and that would be a disaster. And I want to make a good impression on your –”

Louis chuckled, making Harry stop and pout at him. “Oh baby, don’t make that face. Why are you so worried, I don’t get it? And to answer your question, yes you did pack your winter clothes since I saw you do it. Also, I can provide you with clothes okay shut up. I’m not that small. Also, they’ll love you even if you show up there naked.”

“But what if I –”

“I’ll shut you up.”

“And if I –”

“You won’t embarrass yourself. And don’t look at me like that, we’ve been through this conversation thrice. And there’s three more hours left. I’ll hold your hand and keep you close. So shush.”

“But –”

“Shush Harry,” he said, squeezing his hand simultaneously. It drew an unintentional smile from Harry, as he watched his boyfriend’s side profile and the crinkling of his eyes. He was the most beautiful person he had seen, and Louis didn’t even know that fact. He was caring, not even snapping once at his worries which his last boyfriend used to do. He wasn’t so nice, Harry could say now. Harry was so lucky to have met Louis, he thought as he put his earphones back in and put on the Oasis discography. He had taken a liking to it after the third time he had heard, and downloaded it right after Louis stopped playing it. It helped him calm down, with the music drowning his worries out.

Harry smiled wider as he watched Louis, eventually looking out the window to hide his red cheeks. Louis had this strange ability to calm him down while flustering him at the same time. There was something about him, which intimidated as well as relaxed Harry at once, depending on how he felt. On the day they had met, he was stumped by Louis and scared by the brilliance of him. And the more Louis would scowl, the more anxious and guilty he would feel. He had his unearned confidence to combat Louis’ sarcasm then. But once they started to date, the walls between them, and Harry, fell harder for the boy. Louis was so caring, allowing Harry’s clinginess and he found it easy to love him.

Previous experiences with dating had lead to heartbreak for Harry, mainly due to his asexuality and unwillingness to have sex. It made him that much more eager to find the right person, who wouldn’t force him but love. It wasn’t as if Harry hadn’t had sex, he did but eventually he stopped feeling as if the person deserved him when they demanded. But Louis, Harry was willing to give him his all if he could keep him. But the strange thing was that he hadn’t asked yet.

It was actually surprising that Louis hadn’t broached the topic of sex, but Harry blamed it on timing. And a bit on himself, since he had been avoiding having the talk since he didn’t feel ready enough to reveal his sexual orientation, which usually shocked people and led them to scoff. He knew Louis wouldn’t, but it did worry him. He loved it when Louis would shut Niall off when he talked about their lack of sex, but Harry didn’t understand it. He couldn’t understand why Louis hadn’t initiated anything sexually, apart from kissing. Maybe Niall was right and that Louis was waiting for the right moment to fuck. It might be in his childhood home, although he hadn’t hinted at that. But he would be fine with that, he thought as he closed his eyes.

Harry didn’t know when he fell asleep, comforted by the hum of music. But he blinked his eyes slowly when he was shook awake by his boyfriend, who looked rather amused by something.

“You were drooling,” he said, smilingly widely. Harry blinked, absently rubbing at the corner of his mouth before giving him a slow, dazed smile. He yawned, stretching his limbs as much as he could in small space. He had a crick in his neck from the bad sleep position, so he massaged it while looking at the road and trying to figure how far they had come. Harry found his phone laid neatly on the dashboard, knowing Louis had taken out the ear buds and thanked him. Harry didn’t know if he had seen his playlist, but if he had then he didn’t comment on it. He was frowning at the road, eyes darting to the GPS and back before the corner of his lips tugged up. Harry soon understood why, when small houses began popping up beside them on the road, far and few in between but they were definitely headed into the town.

“We’re almost there, Haz,” Louis said, as if reading his thought. He gave him a crooked smile, as he tried to analyze Harry’s mood. He reached blindly for his hand, and Harry reached midway to grab it, entwining their fingers. “Are you nervous?”

“A bit,” he said truthfully, taking in a deep breath. He kept his eyes on the road, rubbing his nose. There was a fresh coating of snow on the ground except for the road, which looked recently cleared. The place looked quiet, as Louis had told him it would be and the frequency of houses increased until Harry could see people on the streets and the front yards. They didn’t give their car a second glance, walking leisurely in multiple layers of clothing. He imagined Louis’ house would just like the ones they passed, with loud children milling about in the front yard and playing with snow. He imagined the house would be crammed but he could deal with it, he thought as he tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. A few minutes later he untied his bun, shaking out his hair. He thought he might as well fix his appearance, since he had to look presentable and it wasn’t as if he’d know where they were going anyway. Louis took a sharp turn, tongue caught between his teeth.

“So is your house like one of those?” Harry asked distractedly, pulling his lip between his teeth. He was trying to comb through the knots, trying to fix his hair.

“Yeah something like that,” he mused distantly, and from the corner of his eyes Harry noticed they were pulling up in one of the homes. He quickly pushed his hair out of his face, sitting up straight and seeing his red cheeks in the mirror. He almost missed how the house looked from outside and craned his neck to see better. His eyes widened in disbelief. “And we’re here, love.”

“Fucking shut up,” Harry muttered under his breath as he gaped. Louis’ house wasn’t anything like the ones he passed. Rather, it was a fucking mansion. The front yard was bigger, with a few rose bushes trimmed to perfection beyond which lay a grand house, larger than what Louis had led him to believe. It wasn’t posh exactly, but it seemed more than enough to fit Louis’ family and more. He gaped at Louis in surprise, who looked amused in reaction to him. “You never told me you were rich!”

“You never asked me if I’m rich,” he said, winking as he cut the engine. Harry stared at him impassively, knowing very well that Louis was quoting him. The latter laughed, shaking his head as he reached in the backseat for the two jackets they had laid on top of their luggage. He dumped Harry’s jacket on his lap, shaking him out of his reverie. “Wear it. It’s cold outside.”

Harry nodded, stretching his arms as much as he could to wear it. “Why didn’t you tell me that you were rich?”

“Was it relevant?” he asked, a cute little frown on his face as he pulled on his own jacket. He said it so casually, as if wealth was what he didn’t give a second thought about. But it started making sense to Harry. How he had spontaneously invited Harry, since obviously he had more than enough room for nine people. And right now, it seemed that Louis might be richer than he let on. “Did you never wonder why I didn’t look for a job? And how I still have more than enough money?”

“I actually... didn’t think that.” Harry frowned, pulling down on his jacket. He noticed how Louis’ jacket was not right, so he unknowingly began fixing it. Louis shook his head as Harry leaned back, before pushing himself up on his knees as he twisted to pull out two bags from the backseat. Harry took the time to think, and yeah he not working was strange. Liam and Niall had found jobs a few weeks in, while Louis never even tried to do so. Why did Harry not notice that when he was basically studying Louis the whole time? He should have known. “How did I not notice that?” he voiced out.

“I don’t know, Harry,” Louis said, throwing Harry’s duffle on his lap before sitting down with one of his bags. He was panting, flicking his fringe to a side as he smirk, finding merriment in Harry’s almost existential crisis. “I often wear expensive brands, sports or otherwise and not the cheap ones. I have thrown the brand names around, you should have googled them. Then you wouldn’t have been so surprised.”

Louis winked again as he got out of his car, shouldering his bag before walking over to Harry’s side. He opened the door for him, offering a hand which Harry easily grabbed on to and pulled himself out. He straightened his shirt, hitching up his duffle before Louis led them towards the door. Harry looked at his feet so as to not trip and took in deep, calming breaths. When they stood on the porch, Louis kissed him softly and whispered reassurances against his lips before giving him a radiant smile. Harry was busy smiling when Louis rang the bell, and kept staring hence almost missing the door being opened. It didn’t give him enough time to prepare himself, as he turned and his smile froze.

In the family photo by Louis’ bed, his mother’s face wasn’t completely visible. She was smiling at the baby in her hand hence Harry didn’t actually know how she looked like. But when he saw her at the door, Harry knew who she was but in a different way. He knew him not as Louis’ mother but as...

“Holy fucking shit it’s Johannah Deakin,” he exclaimed and pursed his lips to trap the accompanying squeal. Johannah’s smile turned a little confused as she tilted her head to a side, looking more amused than anything. Harry was freaking out inside, since he met one of his favorite people. See Johannah Deakin was actually a slightly famous fashion designer, whose androgynous patterns he especially adored. He knew she had taken a little time off two years ago, hence Harry hadn’t been talking his new friends’ ears off about it. And his boyfriend had forgotten to mention another little fact about himself. Fucking shit, indeed. “I’m such a big fan of your work, especially the pantsuit collection. I think I have the whole collection, gifted some to my sister too. Holy shit I didn’t know you were Louis’ mom. And great I’m fucking swearing now.”

He glanced at Louis pleadingly, knowing if he took another breath he’d rush into another long ramble. And the latter understood it, clamping his hand over Harry’s mouth to stop him from adding more. He looked amused, eyebrows raised high and lips twitching as he held back a laugh. His mother looked the same right now, just she allowed herself as smile as she looked on. As Harry’s eyes darted between them, he wondered how he hadn’t noticed the similarities between them since there were a lot. Louis was right. Harry was really oblivious to everything and especially details.

“Alright?” Louis teased softly after a few seconds passed, giggling fondly when Harry nodded. He took back his hand, but not before patting Harry’s cheek and taking a step back to face his mom. Harry giggled nervously, pushing back his hair and looking at Johannah as well. She was giving them a fond, secretive smile which widened as seconds passed.

“Louis told me you would do something like this,” she said simply, crinkles forming by her eyes. Louis chuckled beside him, squeezing his hand before he let go. He embraced his mother, the two of them exchanging quiet greetings while Harry took a step back, letting them be. He rubbed at his cheeks, feeling them warm under his fingertips before groaning mentally. He hated his habit of making bad impression, but at least she didn’t hate him just yet. After all, he had almost screamed in her face. Why was he like that, he wondered before smiling at them.

“Nice to meet you Mrs. Deakin,” he greeted when she let go of her son. Harry had his hands held behind his back, and raised one to shake hers. She just laughed, batting it away before wrapping him a warm hug.

“Call me Jay, dear,” she whispered before pressing a kiss against his cheek. Harry nodded shakily, making her chuckle good-naturedly. “So I’m guessing Louis didn’t tell you what I did for a living?”

“Neither did he tell me about his financial status,” he mumbled, stiffening up immediately. Jay seemed unfazed, even laughing and shaking her head. Harry smiled again, shoulders loosen. He grasped his boyfriend’s arm, leaning in closer to him. “Why didn’t you tell me your mother was Johannah Deakin? You saw her designs in my closet, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t think it was relevant?” he said again with a frown. Harry gave him a blank look, which just made him smile. “Oh come on, babe. Why would I flaunt it? I mean I can’t just say hey that shirt you have, the designer is my mother. Name dropping is not my style.” Harry huffed, smiling tugging on his lips. “Besides, remember how sure I was about sportswear making a comeback? How did you think I know that?”

“Yeah right,” Harry deadpanned, rolling his eyes. Jay started laughing, alerting them to her presence as once again, they had forgotten the world existed. Harry smiled shyly at her. “I’m sorry Jay, but your son tells me nothing.”

“I know he’s like that,” she stage whispered, cupping her hand around her lips. Louis huffed this time, making the other two laugh. “Oh come on, boo you know I’m happy for you right? Harry is a good boy and you deserve some sweet happiness. So let the old lady have some fun on your expense. And Harry, don’t hesitate to make yourself at home and excuse me, I need to go. The twins may bring the house down.”

She nodded at them once before she started walking away. Louis nudged at his side, indicating they should follow and Harry suddenly felt the cold again. He grinned, rubbing his cheeks absently as they stepped in the warmth of the house.

“Who’s looking after the twins now?” Louis yelled out, closing the door behind him.

“Lottie and Tommy but I can’t trust them for too long.”

Louis laughed, shaking his head and so did Jay, slipping into a room to their left. Harry noted it absently, while his eyes were still focused on Louis. He looked beautiful when he laughed, and it was an experience really. His eyes were shut, crinkles forming their side as he placed on hand on his stomach, curling in on himself slightly. He didn’t try to hide it when Louis looked at him, just brushed his hand softly across his cheek. Louis stopped laughing as tilted his head to a side. “Alright?”

Harry nodded, tucking his hair behind his ear. “You’ve got a beautiful house here.”

And it was indeed beautiful. The living room was huge, sparsely decorated. There was a brown, wide, L shaped couch, with plenty seating space. The room was painted in soft colors, with baby proofed, stained furniture. It was a house which showed how many people it housed, looking homey and comfortable at once. It was exactly how Harry would like his future home to be, with a big family he would raise with Louis. It was too soon for that thought, but he could imagine it still.

“It’s home,” he said, shrugging as he smiled. “We’ve been living here since three years now.”

“Yeah?” Harry asked, looking back at his boy. “Where did you live before?”

“New York,” he said, nodding to himself. “Prime spot for fashion, isn’t it? But then my mom got married, and she decided she wanted to raise the younger twins some place big and not in the city, like we were. So we moved out here three years ago and I like it better if I’m being honest. New York is not for me, I think.”

Harry hummed, knowing the hustle bustle of the city. “I get the appeal of this place, but I’m too used to LA, if I’m being honest.”

“Yeah I know.” Louis laughed. Harry could hear a girl’s shriek from their left, the place where Jay had disappeared. He knew that's where the rest of the occupants were. Louis grabbed his hand. “So if you want we can join them now, in the epicenter of the noise zone. Or, like I planned to do, we could go up to my room and nap. Which do you prefer?”

“I’m fine with either,” he said neutrally, even though he would prefer to sleep. Louis knew it as well, as he patted his cheek and wordlessly walked towards the stairs, dragging Harry along. “So we’re going to upstairs then.

“Uh huh.”

Harry looked at his feet again, being careful not to trip. He looked ahead only when they stepped in the hallway, looking around as Louis dragged him past multiple doors. Every one of them was a different, bright color and only one of the rooms seemed to be occupied. Louis told him Fizzy loved staying in, pointing at her yellow door. He led them to the last room, which Harry could assume was of one person. “So is this your room?”

“This is where the magic happens,” he said lowly, raising his eyebrows for a brief second as he placed his hand on the doorknob. Harry raised his eyebrows teasingly, heart thudding loudly in his chest. Louis held that face for a few seconds before he started laughing, shaking his head as he opened the door. “No not really. But let’s go in. Beware, it’s not pretty.”

“It seems nice though,” Harry said, glancing around. It wasn’t as big as he had expected, and certainly cleaner but then Louis hadn’t habited the room for months now. There was a big, fluffy bed in the centre and that was all that mattered. Louis opened the windows, making sunlight drift in along with chilly air. Harry wrapped his arms around himself, not used to chilly weather as he continued scanning the place. There was a wall dedicated entirely to posters of various professions along with a few pictures of Louis in between. There were a lot many posters of soccer players, usually mid kick and others of bands. The corner of his lips twitched up as Louis came to wrap his arm around him. “There are a lot of posters here.”

“I love them but now because of you I need to take down the Oasis ones.” He sounded playfully, nudging his side. “And if I’m not wrong, you’re a football person yeah?”

“Green Bay Packers, yup.”

“But why that team?”

Harry hummed, squinting his eyes at the picture of Louis trying to imitate one of the players. “I don’t know really. One of my friends told me they’re a great team so I love it. And these soccer players have great shorts.”

“You’re weird, Harry,” he said fondly, chuckling before pecking Harry’s cheek. He walked away, and Harry found him shutting the windows again. “And if you were cold, you could have just told me. Also, wear warmer clothes and not this... silk thing.”

“It’s actually cotton,” Harry corrected, rubbing up and down his clothed arms. “But yeah, I’ll keep that in mind. But first of you, your bed is so fluffy.”

“I know,” Louis said, falling backwards onto the matters and sighing. It cushioned his fall, making him moan happily and grin. Harry shook his head at his boyfriend, lying down beside him but softly. “I know I have to show you the place and our garden, which you can see through the window you know. But I’m tired, so we’ll do that later.”

“And what about you other bags and the box?” he asked, eyes drooping shut already. The soft mattress was getting to him already.

“Later,” Louis muttered, before poking Harry in his ribs and making him squirm. “But before that, you need to change into something warmer.”

“Later.”

“Now Harry, please. You’ll catch a cold.”

“Fine,” he grunted even if he smiled. He sat up reluctantly before stripping off his hands. He dug out his sweats and tugged on a sweater before falling back on the bed. “Happy now?”

“Very,” Louis said, laughing.

**

Harry finally understood why Louis always called his family loud.

Harry was extremely hungry when they walked down the stairs, having eaten nothing since breakfast twelve hours ago. He said the same to Louis, whose stomach grumbled loudly after his words.

“You should have told me you were hungry Harry,” he told him, hand clutching his stomach. “Not bloody sleep.”

“It was your idea!” Harry accused, waggling his finger at him as he continued to follow the direction Louis steered him towards. He was aware that the living room was still empty, and he’d have to ask someone as to why. “You told we should take a nap.”

“Should have told me to bring good too,” he grumbled and so did his stomach. Louis glared at it, telling it to shut up which made Harry giggle. There was a fond smile tugging on Louis’ lips even as he tried to fight it, placing his hand on the small of Harry’s back. “As if you’ve never spoken to yourself, or your organs.”

“I can’t deny that,” he admitted, looking away from Louis to find himself in a kitchen. There were multiple pairs of eyes focused on them right now, each one blue and sharp. The Tomlinsons had strong genes, hence they looked more or less the same, with sharp features and short stature.  All of Louis’ sisters looked like Jay, the woman who gave Harry a warm, welcoming smile. Harry felt frozen, acutely aware of the silence that had befallen the room. It was making him uneasy, especially since the silence stretched on and he didn’t know how else to react than just wave. “Hello.”

Louis sighed, wrapping his arm fully around Harry’s waist as he pushed him in the kitchen. “Harry, this is my family who isn’t usually so quiet. And everyone, this is Harry, my boyfriend.”

And it was suddenly as if someone had turned the noise back on as everyone burst into loud voices.

“It was Lottie’s idea to freak you,” Fizzy told Harry, nodding her head towards her sister. Lottie protested, pushing back her blonde hair and it just spurred Harry into laughter. “But you seem nice.”

“He is nice,” Louis corrected, kissing Harry on the lips before letting go of him. “So Lottie, I heard you were trying to freak my boyfriend.”

“Mom!” Lottie yelled before running away with Lottie on her heel. Jay laughed at them, shaking her head before she continued cooking. Harry fiddled with his rings, suddenly feeling anxious again without the presence of her boyfriend and out of place. He took his time looking around in the kitchen, which was big and had a bright color theme. It was nice kitchen, and so Harry said.

“Oh thanks dear,” she said, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. She assigned the older twins a minor help job before wiping her hands on her apron. He walked around the counter towards Harry, smiling warmly at him. “Did Louis give you a tour of the house yet or was he being lazy again.”

“I have visited three rooms today,” Harry said slowly, minding his words. He was growing comfortable around Jay already, even though his hysteria hadn’t completely died down. On top of that, she was Louis’ mother and he was still anxious about it. But Jay just laughed, crinkles forming by her eyes.

“I’ll make sure he does that tomorrow.” She was about to say something but was interrupted by a loud squeal from the living room. Turning to the direction of the noise, she cupped her hands around her mouth before loudly yelling. “Louis and Charlotte keep down your noises. The twins have just gone to bed and if they wake up then they’re your responsibility.”

She waited, eyes narrowed before she turned to Harry again and smiled. “I know we haven’t had a chance to talk properly yet but you make Louis happy so thank you.”

“He deserves happiness,” Harry said without thinking, cheeks coloring when Jay’s smile widened. He looked at the twins, who were chopping vegetables. “And do you need any help?”

“No Harry, you don’t have to join in,” she said, clutching her chest dramatically. Harry got where Louis got it from, laughing.

“But I am good at cooking,” he insisted. “And I want to help too, please.”

“He is good at cooking.” Louis came to wrap his arms around Harry and perching his chin on his shoulder. His chest was heaving, most likely from the run. “He cooked for me a lot of times. Even breakfast today.”

“I outran you, Lou,” Lottie said as he padded back into the kitchen, out of breath just like Louis was. He stuck out his tongue at her over Harry’s shoulder and she did the same in return.

“It wouldn’t happen if you jogged with me,” Harry whispered softly enough for only him to hear.

“You run like a girl,” Lottie teased, laughing.

“That’s not good to say,” Harry said at the same time that Fizzy said, “It is offensive.” The two of them smiled at each other, before she went back to stirring. “And Jay, please allow me to help you. I can’t stand here idle.”

She sighed as if he was asking a big favor, making Louis chortle and press his face onto Harry’s shoulder. Jay narrowed her eyes at her son before smiling at Harry. “Alright if you say so. What do you suggest we make.”

“I make a mean chicken salad,” Louis piped in, raising his hand. He got three pairs of eyes giving him an unimpressed look. “What? I do make chicken salad. Ask Harry!”

“No one wants salad,” Lottie muttered, scoffing as she untied her bun before tying it back.

After that it only got louder, with Lottie and Louis getting in a shouting match for no reason. Harry took Louis’ side in their arguments before quietening down again and smiling. Dan joined them for dinner, telling Jay that the younger twins were asleep and introducing himself to Harry. He was a football lover too, discussing it during dinner. Louis was engaged in a conversation with Lottie and Fizzy, and the twins were in their own little bubble.

“So Harry and Louis, how did you get together,” Jay asked as she pointed a fork towards them, effectively snapping everyone out of their individual conversations. And once again, five pairs of curious, blue eyes (along with Dan’s) were on them. Harry instantly reached for Louis’ hand under the table, meeting in the middle as the grasped firmly. Lottie was smirking at them, on the verge of teasing them. “I know the two of you are roommates and didn’t get along at first. But then what happened?”

“Well it’s a long story,” Harry said, sharing a look with his boyfriend. He was sporting a fond smile, squeezing his hand under the table. If he was honest, he had expected the question to come a lot earlier but everyone seemed to be walking around it. “I was a bit of a d – I mean an annoyance and made a bad impression on him.”

“I didn’t mind you –”

“And then I woke him early due to yoga and he didn’t like that so he started pranking me –”

“Pranks? Lou!” Jay admonished, a stern look on her face while Lottie just lost it. She chortled, almost dropping her head into her dish as she laughed and Jay shushed her.

“They weren’t actual pranks,” Louis protested, throwing his hands up in the air. Since one of his hands was holding Harry’s, their entangled palms went up to and Louis just placed them on the table. “You know Harry, you can’t tell a story like that! I’ll explain. And Lottie, please stop laughing.”

“Early morning yoga,” she said, before laughing until she ran out of breath. “And you hate waking up earlier than necessary.”

He sighed, shaking his head. “So yeah, Harry made a bad impression on me but I wasn’t so deterred by that. The final blow was when he bad mouthed Oasis.”

“This keeps getting hilarious,” Lottie exclaimed before laughing again. She squeaked, and from Fizzy’s glare he could only assume she kicked under the table. “Alright I’ll try not to laugh so loud. Happy? Now continue big brother.”

Shooting an exasperated look at his sister, Louis continued. He spoke with exaggerated hand gestures, adding his commentary to how events happened and Harry watched it all eagerly. He felt himself getting lost in the animation on Louis’ face and adding in when Louis paused. They blended their words seamlessly into the story, laughing and teasing one another while smiling. Harry almost forgot that they were people around, and every time Lottie laughed or Jay cooed, he would remember and blush.

“And he didn’t realize it was a date,” Harry said, laughing as he glanced at his boyfriend. He had paused mid actions, looking at him accusingly. “And you’re telling Liam did before you? That's a shame there.”

“You should have specified it!” Louis countered, pouting at him before he ate. “How was I supposed to know?”

“Not alarming since Louis was always a little dim in the matters of love,” Fizzy commented quietly, but everyone heard it and looked towards her. Harry frowned at her, expecting her to elaborate but she didn’t. Louis let out a quiet sigh beside him, moving the food on his place with a fork. While everyone else was shooting the girl an exasperated, wide-eyed look. Fizzy sighed, shaking her head before pasting on a smile as she looked at Harry and Louis. “What I mean is you two are cute.”

Lottie grinned too, although it seemed more fake. “Yeah and I still can’t believe you played Oasis on blast.”

“Excuse me they’re a good band!” Louis protested, lingering tension still visible on his shoulders. Harry felt as if he was missing something there, frowning as he looked at everyone. He assumed the worst at the point, even as he tried to eat and forget how the air had gotten heavy. He half listened to Louis and Lottie’s arguments until his name was said. “And Harry has the whole discography in his phone!”

Harry blinked, looking up and snapping out of his thoughts. He stared at Louis, watching the furrow of his eyebrows and his lips moving. He nodded when Louis looked at him pointedly.

“Oh I’m sure Harry just likes you, not the band.”

“They’re good,” Harry said, nodding furiously and looking at Louis. He did like their music, or most of it anyway and if he wasn’t lost in his thoughts, he’d have elaborated. But he was still going over everyone’s weird reactions from a few minutes back, not understanding a thing. He guessed it was about his exes, but knew nothing more. “I like them.”

“It’s just us you don’t have to say that,” she said conspiringly as he leaned towards him.

Before either of them could add more, Jay shushed them all before dominating the conversations. Like Louis had said, Tomlinsons were loud and so was Jay. Hence everyone’s voices drowned out most of Harry’s thoughts.

“Did you have fun?” Louis asked him later when they were back in his room. Harry had already slipped under the sheets after having changed his clothes. Louis was still in the ones from before as switched off the light after Harry nodded at him. “That’s good then.”

Harry hummed, blinking to see Louis’ silhouette walk closer to him and the bed creaked. Harry turned on the other side, smiling as his boyfriend slid closer and wrap himself around him. He liked that Louis had eventually given in and grown comfortable with cuddles. He always said Harry had been the only one to make him cuddle, and it surprised him since he never explained how. He had a feeling it was something to do with Fizzy’s comment. He wanted to ask Louis about him, and almost did.

“Louis your family,” he started, thinking over the words before swallowing them. “They’re loud.”

There was a pause, and Harry shut his eyes knowing Louis knew he wasn’t saying what he wanted to. “I know.”

And Harry left it at that, whispering good night with his eyes wide open and staring outside the window. A while later he could hear Louis’ soft snores against his neck, smiling and letting go of his anxious thoughts. Maybe he was being paranoid as usual.

**

The next morning Harry woke up with his legs tangled up in blankets and sunlight streaming in from the wrong side of the room. He groaned, smelling bacon and he frowned. Someone was poking his foot, which Harry opened to find was Louis who was sitting on the other end of the bed and grinning. He lifted up a tray of food and Harry hurriedly sat up, making the other laugh boisterously.

“I’ve got breakfast,” he said as he walked over to sit by Harry’s side. He pecked him lightly on the cheek and Harry tried to pull him in for more before remembering he had morning breath. He mouthed one minute before rushing in the direction of the bathroom, smiling when he heard Louis’ laugh behind him. He brushed his teeth quickly, frowning at his face in the mirror before sighing as he made his way back.

Harry then leaned in for a proper kiss, tasting the similar minty taste on Louis tongue and grinned as he leaned back. Louis had been eating already and offered Harry the tray.

“So why aren’t we having breakfast with everyone else?” he asked, popping a piece of bacon in his mouth. Louis smiled when Harry’s tongue darted out before he ate, but didn’t comment. He noticed how Louis only teased him lightly when people were around, being quiet and fond when they were alone. He quite liked that.

“Actually only Fizzy is up before ten in our house,” Louis explained, shaking his head fondly. From what Harry knew, Fizzy was the least troublesome, quiet girl while Lottie matched Louis’ loudness. “So mom just said one day, if everyone else wants to wake up late then they should make breakfasts for themselves. And by now, every one of them knows to cook and I can make sandwiches. But today I went downstairs earlier so bacon.”

Harry laughed, feeling endeared more by Louis’ hand actions and facial expressions than the story. He was a lot more fun when he was home, when he was relaxed at his home. “Your family is so independent yet so close. It’s nice.”

“Yeah I know,” he said, before swallowing. He gently flicked his hair out of his eyes, looking out the window. “Mom wants every one of us to be able to stand on our own, you know.” He looked back at Harry, smirking. “She tried to get me to help her cook too, but I’m lazy so she gave up on me. Hence, I can cut vegetables and all but I can’t cook.”

“I’ll teach you, don’t worry.” Harry ruffled Louis’ hair with his clean hand, making them more mussed than they were before. His eyes were a lighter shade of blue than usually, twinkling merrily as they ate. “So is there anything to do out here? Are we doing anything today?”

“Things to do in winter? Not much.” Louis snorted at the thought, shaking his head as he looked out the window. Snowfall had started and Harry grimaced at it, not wanting to step out in the snow right now. He had brought along his fancy boots and walking in them would be a disaster they should all avoid. Louis probably thought the same as he grinned at Harry’s bare feet. “But underneath all this snow, the town is beautiful. But it’s better in the summer, when it turns into a tourist spot. There are hot springs nearby, you know and I know you like to be naked.”

He sang the last part, and Harry laughed knowing Louis hadn’t ever seen him naked yet. He had seen him in his boxers yes but not naked. It made him wonder why he still hadn’t initiated anything before he shoved that thought aside again. “Maybe we should come back in the summer.”

“Yeah?” Louis asked, raising an eyebrow curiously. He was smiling softly, and Harry’s heart was thundering due to uttering just that one statement. It basically implied commitment, that they’d be together in a few months as well.

Harry cleared his throat, looking at his food. “We could spend half the summer here and half in LA. If you want, that is.”

“Seems like the perfect plan,” he replied and Harry could see him smile from the corner of his eyes. He smiled as he finished his food, his heart being jumpy and happy. Once Louis had kept his tray aside he turned to face Harry again, throwing an arm around his shoulder. “But yeah, Oli texted me last night. Apparently everyone is gathering for a welcome home thing? He invited us too, and they don’t know about you. So you’re welcome to stay in.”

Harry raised his eyebrows, tilting his head curiously. “Who is ‘everyone’?”

“All my friends from here,” Louis said, forehead furrowing. He absently played with his fringe, trying to push it to a side. “It’s six of us. And except for Oli, all of them are older than us.”

“Yeah?”

Louis nodded. “I didn’t reply to him yet and it’s been a few hours. Was waiting to ask you. So what do you say?”

“I mean they are your friends,” Harry said slowly, furrowing his eyebrows as he pursed his lips. He shifted a little on the bed, debating it. He didn’t mind it really, he concluded. Besides, there was not much to do according to Louis. “So tell them we’ll be joining.”

Louis grinned, nodding as he let his hands drop. “I’ll tell them that. But for now, we could either take another nap which is my plan. I could show you our house and all but I think we should take a nap.”

Harry laughed at Louis’ earnest expression. He had grown lazier than when at college, and it was endearing him. But he got out of bed, pulling down his sweater. “As much as I would _love_ that, I need to take a shower first.”

“Alright but then we sleep,” Louis repeated, and Harry shook his head.

“Sure, Lou,” he said as he picked up a new set of clothes and swaggered towards the bathroom.

**

Harry and Louis headed downstairs for lunch, which went without saying, was full of noise.

Harry had purposely taken the seat beside Fizzy, which lead Louis to take the chair opposite of him but it all worked out. They had their feet tangled under the table, which Harry talked with Fizzy in quiet whispers. She was very smart and aware, which Harry immediately loved of her. Louis would occasionally include him in his arguments with Lottie, which were often but fond and Harry would back him up as he smiled at his boyfriend. It was very domestic and Harry loved him, even if something bugged him which he didn’t focus much on. At the very end, Harry asked Fizzy what she had meant yesterday.

“Have you not talked with him yet?” she asked, voice soft and without judgement. “Did he not tell you?”

Harry frowned, looking across at the table where Louis was now talking with the twins. “He didn’t. I mean I’ve been avoiding having the talk because... I’m scared.”

She frowned before understanding dawned in her eyes. She smiled as she shook her head. “You need to have the talk with him, Harry. Soon.”

Harry nodded, knowing he would have to. But like he said, he was scared Louis would break up with him. It’s what had happened before.

After that Louis finally took him around the house, adding sarcastic commentary which Harry laughed at. He saw the garden Louis had mentioned, which was now covered by an inch of snow. Then they headed up again to binge watch Netflix on Louis’ laptop until the evening, legs tangled underneath the sheets. They were a few episodes down when at five there were loud raps on the door. Louis groaned as he threw off his sheets while Harry giggled as he watched his boyfriend drag his feet to the door.

Harry ran his fingers through his hair, twisting his body a little so he could see whoever it was at the door. There were two guys standing outside he could see, wide grins on their faces. One of them had flaming red hair while the other was blonde, both of them talking excitedly and Harry assumed they were Louis’ friends. But his boyfriend didn’t seem happy as he greeted them.

“What?” he hissed, hand holding the door open just a tad. The redhead laughed, shaking his head amusedly. Harry frowned as he leaned his head back against the headboard. “And why are you an hour early?”

“To surprise you, of course,” the blond one said, laughing.

“Yeah it’s not like we’re disturbing you from anything huh,” the other said, his voice being rather squeaky. He looked over Louis’ shoulder and his eyes widened when he found Harry on the bed. “Wait a minute is there someone on your bed?”

The blond pushed the door wider, eyebrows rising as he stared unblinkingly at Harry. Harry didn’t know how to react except for pulling the sheets up and sliding underneath to hide himself. “There is! Wait bro did you finally cure your –”

Harry never heard the end of the sentence since Louis shoved his friend back roughly and slamming the door behind him, leaving him confused.

Outside the door Louis was glaring at his friends, unable to believe they would actually say what he thought they were going to.

“What the hell was that?” he asked, placing his hands on his hips. He looked between the two of them, who didn’t look even the slightest deterred. “I know what you were going to say and yes, I’m still ace alright. I won’t change.”

“But you have a boy in your bed,” Calvin pointed out, scratching his blond hair.

“He’s fully clothed so what's your point,” Louis countered, keeping his voice carefully low. He knew it was a bad idea for Harry to meet his friends. They weren’t bad people but they were just awful when it came to asexuality. The two of them along with Nizam refused to believe he could be asexual but pretended they were all right with it. They said they were accepting but when it came to it, they thought Louis would give up on his asexuality and fuck someone. It was just irritating to say the least. He hated that. “You know what, I don’t want to hear it. I’m not going to tolerate any jokes from you two tonight. And if you trouble my boyfriend, our friendship is over. You get me?”

“Jeez aren’t you overreacting a bit?” Calvin said, laughing nervously while Oli smiled sheepishly. Louis liked to think he was very much not but he smiled faux sweetly, cocking his head to a side in warning. “Alright but we’ll keep in mind.”

When Louis opened the door again, Harry looked at him curiously. His smile was strained, his face red as he looked at his friend. His friends didn’t look as cheery.

“Just wait downstairs and tell the others what I told you,” he was saying, voice brimming with tamed anger and irritation. Louis slammed the door, turning towards Harry and he could see his jaw was clenched. He took in a deep breath, closing his eyes and when he opened them again, he looked a little calm. This was the first time Harry had actually seen him angry, which he could barely hold back and it was a little scary. Whatever his friends had said had really got to him. It was lucky that Harry had never prompted something like that else he was sure he’d be crying for days.

“What was that about?” Harry asked, keeping his voice soft as he tilted his head to a side. Louis took another deep breath, anger melting away as he smiled at Harry. “What did they say?”

“It’s nothing Harry,” Louis said, shaking his head. The way he grit his teeth said it was something but Harry let it drop, knowing that if it was important he would tell. He carded his fingers through his hair as he walked to his bag. He pulled out a random pair of jeans before rifling through his shirts and picking out a fluffy sweater. He turned to give Harry another smile, this one being softer than the one before. Harry smiled back, even if his forehead was creased with worry and confusion. “They just came early to surprise and I hadn’t told them about you. So change of plans, we’re going now. And I’ll be going to get changed so yeah.”

He rushed towards the bathroom in a way that was unlike him. Harry stared after him, wondering what it was his friends had said. He was certain it was about Harry, from his words and their reactions. His mind raced a million miles in worry as he stripped off his shirt and put on a silky red one. He sat on the bed, biting on his nails. Louis came out of the bathroom a few minutes later, wearing skin-tight jeans and a white sweater cashmere hoodie. Harry could figure out exactly what it was but it looked wonderful on him. He looked less upset than before, but his forehead was still creased.

“So shall we go?” Louis asked, smiling at him again as he gave him an appreciative once over. There was a twinkle in his eyes as he nodded to himself before heading to his closet to pull out two jackets, one of which he threw at Harry. It almost hit him in the face. “Wear this on top. It’s cold outside.”

Harry hurriedly pulled it on as he followed Louis out the door. He looked down at the coat, which was brown and furry and he was sure it made him look like a bear. Louis’ giggles, as he stopped walked, were just a confirmation of it. He smiled at his boyfriend, who looked his cheery self again. “So you just gave me this to make of me, didn’t you?”

“No baby you look bear-y handsome,” Louis said, laughing at his pun before blowing a kiss at him. Harry crossed his arms and huffed playfully, loving how it made Louis laugh again before he grabbed his hand. Swinging their entwined hands between them, Louis led them down the stairs. For the first time, the living room wasn’t empty.

Harry’s heartbeat quickened as he saw five boys sitting on the sofa, chatting and laughing amongst them. When they noticed Harry and Louis’ presence, they quietened down suddenly and a tensed silence spread over the room. Harry tightened his grip on Louis’ arm, feeling increasingly uneasy by the way Louis’ friends were gaping at him. It was as if they were judging him, right from his long hair to his less fancy than usual boots. They were dressed in dull dark colors, while Harry stuck out like a sore thumb with his bright red shirt, half hidden under his coat. He shuffled his feet, not liking the vibe in the room.

Ultimately, Louis cleared his throat. “Been so long, right?”

It didn’t make the silence any less tensed but at least everyone diverted their gazes. One of them stood up, who was clearly the only handsome guy in the group. He grinned, his brown eyes welcoming as he walked towards them. He was taller than him, muscular and Harry was feeling increasingly jealous. Louis let go of his hand, taking quick steps to wrap his arms around the guy as he laughed. “Been long indeed, Lou.”

Louis laughed as he let go of him, turning towards Harry and extending his arm. Harry quickly leaned back into his boyfriend’s touch as he smiled at the guy coldly. “Harry, this is Luke. And Luke, this is my Harry. My boyfriend.”

Louis looked pointedly at his friends, eyebrows raised challengingly. They muttered ‘hellos’ and Harry smiled at them awkwardly. There seemed to be tension between Louis and everyone else, except for Luke. Harry couldn’t understand it, but he tried not to let his anxious emotions show. Was that in reaction to Harry? Were they homophobic? What was it?

“It’s nice to meet you,” Luke whispered, smiling at Harry warmly. “Don’t mind them, okay? They’re a bit weird about it still.”

Harry nodded, smiling slightly as he pretended to understand what he said. He decided he wasn’t that bad.

They walked the distance to Luke’s house, Harry thankful for his thick coat and sat in the basement drinking cheap vodka. It was mostly the other four friends, whose names he had already forgotten, who kept up the conversation. Luke kept quiet, occasionally smiling while Louis added in a sarcastic comment or two before gritting his teeth again. Harry did not make an effort to join in and he had a feeling they weren’t including him either. He was used to coldness, since he used to get that from Louis before. But this was something else, some tension underlying which he didn’t understand the cause of but he knew Louis felt too. Plus, Harry didn’t know how he could contribute anyway, since they kept going on about girls and sex and partying, neither of which he did.

But he couldn’t help but feel they were aimed towards Harry and Louis, some references about fucking. Like the time the blond one, Calvin, talked about fucking a girl and pointedly looked at Louis as he said he wouldn’t know what it would be like. Harry shifted in his seat while Louis’ grip on his thigh tightened marginally.

“I’m going to the bathroom,” he announced loudly, aiming a fake smile at everyone else in the room. When he looked at Harry, he smiled genuinely and a little apologetically as he squeezed his thigh and stood up. He gave Luke a pointed look before he headed upstairs. Luke shifted a little closer to Harry on the couch while Calvin started laughing for some unknown reason.

“So Harry,” he slurred, giving a lopsided grin as he leaned in closer. He was sitting across from Harry on the armchair, but it still made him shift back. His eyes looked him up and down, making Harry feel uncomfortable. “Between the two of you who tops?”

“Excuse me?” he squeaked, clearing his throat. The blond laughed as if Harry’s embarrassment was the funniest thing.

“I don’t think they’ve had sex,” Stan said, eyes shifty. His voice wasn’t teasing, just curious but Harry didn’t like the implication and the mocking laughter that followed from the other three. He gulped his drink, staring at the empty glass resolutely. “Right?”

“That’s enough,” Luke warned, glaring at them and making them shut up and move on. Louis returned a minute later, looking worried as Harry smiled wearily at him. He immediately glanced at Luke, who whispered something in his ear. Louis’ jaw clenched, eyes flaming as he looked at the other boys.

“That’s it,” Louis yelled, throwing his hands in the air. Harry shrunk back in his place, feeling guilty for no reason. “I knew this was a bad idea. Should have known. Harry and I are leaving.” He looked at Harry and the latter nodded as he got up, keeping his glass by his foot. He smiled at Luke, who looked impassive. “Thank you Luke, but we’ll be leaving now.”

Louis grabbed their coats on their way out and Harry followed him blindly. They were halfway across the blocks without their jacket and Harry shivered. Louis, noticing this immediately stopped and looked at him guiltily.

“I’m sorry Harry,” he said, the tension from his shoulder melting as he ducked his head. There was a light snowfall, snowflakes falling in their hair. He handed Harry his jacket while quietly putting on his own. Harry pulled his jacket closer, thankful again for the thickness of it as he shuffled his feet. “They’re not always this bad but I apologize on their behalf.”

“Not a problem,” Harry said, teeth clattering. Louis looked up and smiled at him before tilting his head to a side. They started walking, with their hands buried in their pockets.

“I didn’t think it would be this bad. But they’ve grown more in their thinking of...”

“Sex being the most important thing?” Harry filled in, tilting his head to a side. Louis looked ahead of them, smiling softly.

“Yeah something like that.”

They walked in silence for a few minutes. “So do you think like that too?”

Louis hummed, shaking his head. “You know, Harry, I disagree with that. I can wait, you know.”

Harry nodded to himself. Louis would wait for him, but obviously not forever. And the anxious thoughts were back. They had to have the talk, but Harry didn’t know how to do that.

**

The next few days had gone by smoothly, with little to no hindrance for him.

Harry spent most of his mornings with Louis as they took care of the younger twins. Ernest immediately took a liking to his hair, insisting to go to ‘Uncle Hawwy’ as he called him. Jay laughed, amused by another one of her son taking a fancy to Harry.

“I don’t blame him,” Louis had said, smiling with Doris in his lap. She was babbling but making no sense. “The boy with the curls. Who wouldn’t love him?”

Harry blushed, absently tucking back his hair as he looked resolutely at little Ernie. He could see Louis’ fond smile from the corner of his eyes, making his heart feel jumpy. It was domestic of them, how they’d take the twins off Jay’s hands every morning. They were loud, mischievous but Harry didn’t mind since they were that adorable. They were very persuasive too, hence making Harry trudge out in the snow to play with them and almost freezing to death. He found solace in the bear coat, hugging it tightly around himself while Louis laughed, finding it incredibly funny. He also brought him hot chocolate as soon as they had stepped inside, warming him up with cuddles and kisses. Harry often found himself thinking of the future those few days, of noisy days filled with kids who greatly resembled Louis and his loudness. It was a good thought, darkened by just a touch of apprehension.

Despite Harry having decided to talk to Louis about their relationship, his sexuality and all, he hadn’t. It was the least surprising development, he thought and sighed. His anxious thoughts had taken over every time he tried, and he spent cold nights wrapped in Louis’ arms feeling guilty over not telling. They were to leave two days after Christmas. It was all of Louis’ decision as he spontaneously proclaimed at dinner. Jay and Lottie had protested to it, with Louis claiming he missed the sun. Harry glanced at him and smiled, scrunching his nose as he continued eating. He knew it wasn’t that. Louis had noticed Harry freezing to death at nights, not yet used to the colder temperatures. It made him feel happy inside, before feeling guilty again that night. He just wanted to get ‘the talk’ over with, just he didn’t know how to initiate it. Maybe he should have let Louis do it a few weeks back when he was going to.

So Harry hatched a plan two days before Christmas, knowing there was a good chance he would fail to execute it right. He had decided he wouldn’t be telling Louis he was asexual, at least not now. Instead he would do an elaborate strip tease, which would surely turn Louis on. Hopefully.

Harry still found it strange and off putting how Louis hadn’t asked him for blowjobs or sex and it had been weeks since they started dating. In his previous relationships, his ex got tired of waiting around for Harry and would usually initiate and Harry would let him. Until he felt tired of complying with their sexual demands, at which he would be called a prude and broken up with. It had hurt him then, when both of his exes had done that. He had cried, talked about it with his mom and cried again. She had listened to him for a while before she soothed him somehow and he would be fine. Now that he didn’t have her and that he actually loved Louis, he had more at stake. Harry never took the first step, hadn’t had to before but now he felt like he should. He couldn’t let Louis go. Louis had said he’d wait before but who knew how long. It was a stupid plan, doomed by Harry’s awkward limbs but he thought it was worth a shot.

So the next day, which was Christmas Eve, Harry had decided. He was doing it. It was Louis’ birthday and his siblings took most of his time while Harry stayed in the kitchen. He helped Jay bake the cake, softly avoiding Louis all day. He was worrying his bottom lip, which had caught Louis’ attention and look concerned about him. It was exactly why Harry insisted spending the entire day in the company of the Tomlinson family. He was nervous, he could admit but the smiles he kept shooting at Louis were genuine. So they walked up the stairs after dinner, with Harry having asked Louis if they could leave early. They could hear the Tomlinsons all the way up and he smiled, before frowning in determination. He squared his shoulders with confidence, acutely aware of the confusion radiating from his boyfriend. He had been distant all day, yes but it was all part of the plan. It killed him to not touch his boyfriend but well, sacrifices. Hopefully, this didn’t turn on him.

Harry let Louis in first, stepping aside and watching as how his boyfriend predictably fell face first onto the bed. He smiled to himself, shaking his head as he let it shut. He stood there still, playing with the rings on his fingers as he thought over how to approach him. To be honest, he hadn’t planned out much of what he would do, had just laid down one point which it should lead up to. And now that they were there, in the last stage of it, Harry felt the nerves creeping in. He shifted from one foot to the other, transfixed by the sight of Louis who turned onto his side to look at him in puzzlement.

“Why are you standing there?” Louis asked when Harry hadn’t joined him immediately. He propped his head on his arm, frowning at him with his feet hanging off the bed. And Harry was suddenly brought back to the first time he had seen Louis, feeling anxious then as well. They had come far from then, he thought, since now he knew that the confidence Louis emitted was a part of him. It soothed him now, making him smile slightly as he walked forward. He fluttered his eyelashes a little, making Louis laugh as he fell onto his back. He propped himself up on his elbows and kept staring. “Are you alright?”

“Yes why do you ask?” he purred, nudging Louis’ knees so he instantly parted them. Harry stood between Louis’ legs, feeling confident as he never had before as he leaned in to kiss his boyfriend. There was an anxious full in his stomach, his mind doubtful as he licked at Louis’ lower lip. He made a confused sound before opening up and letting in Harry, hands grabbing his hair. It made him fall back with nothing holding him up and Louis laughed, clutching on to Harry’s waist and making him fall along. Harry drew back, staring at his giggling boyfriend in confusion since this was not the reaction he had expected. But he wouldn’t give up so he kissed Louis again, catching the laughter with his lips as he felt more anxious than he had ever before. He could feel how Louis wasn’t turned on but confused, even if his hands were pulling on Harry’s hair. He felt deflated, knowing he had failed as he drew back again.

And as expected Louis was looking at him in a mix of confusion and love, locking him in as Harry tried to walk back. This was certainly not what he was going for. He would have been fine with amusement, which would have been the most likely response he knew but this... was not alright. He had failed at his plan and he needed to save face with lies.

“Harry,” he said, voice a little soft. He tilted his head to a side as he frowned as if trying to read his face. Harry was freaking out inside, his ungained confidence seeping away and replaced by panic. “Are you alright?”

“Of course I am, Lou.” Harry smiled widely, knowing he looked like  a maniac now. He pushed himself off his boyfriend, standing up in the little space he had in Louis’ hold. He thought maybe he should go through with the sexy strip tease anyway, which in hindsight he shouldn’t have. He had purposely worn his red silk shirt from the other night, since in his inexperience, unbuttoning shirts was way ‘sexier’ than taking it over his head. It had made him a little cold before but he thought it was the one as he began unbuttoning it. In his need to look ‘sexy’, he had accounted for the fact that he would be nervous. His fingers fumbled over the buttons, laughing nervously as he missed. Louis’ legs around him had fallen slack, enabling him to take another step back as he tried to take his shirt off. Somehow he got tangled in it since he had forgotten the last button. Louis got over his surprise quickly, frowning as he unknowingly and instinctively assisted Harry in his action. This was not what he expected. “Lou, let me just.”

“Haz, what are you doing?” he asked, frowning. Harry was feeling embarrassed as Louis took his shirt off for him and looking confused and worried. Without thinking he leaned in again to kiss Louis and distract him but he grabbed Harry’s shoulder to stop him. Harry groaned, trying to walk away and hide his face but Louis had grabbed on to his hands, lightly of course but he didn’t want to move away. Harry was sure his face was as red as his shirt, which was currently lying on the bed. It should have been him, he thought, gulping.

“I was trying to do a sexy strip tease and seduce you,” Harry admittedly, looking at their entwined hands resolutely. Louis made a strange sound in his through and Harry immediately squeezed his eyes shut. He was feeling a cross between embarrassed and wanting to cry. Of course he was too awkward to be sexy. “And I can’t be sexy for you.”

“What are you talking about?” he asked, finding amusement in the situation. He squeezed Harry’s hand lightly in question, making him look at him again. Louis was amused and fond, head tilted to a side as he waited. Harry didn’t understand him at all in the moment, as he looked completely unbothered by everything. Like he understood all of Harry’s weirdness but not his thoughts, and even then he’d accept him with it. It was confusing him. “Why are you trying to be sexy when you already are sexy?”

“Then why don’t you want to fuck me?” he whined, throwing his head with all the frustration he felt. The energy to run drained out of him, anxious thoughts which he had pushed back filling up his head and freaking him more. He took a step back, shaking off Louis’ hands. Harry was sure he had ruined it with saying it out loud, groaning once again as he let his head drop in his palms. He could feel Louis’s eyes on him and he felt embarrassment creeping up again. He had ruined it for sure he thought, but might as well keep talking. “My exes, you know I don’t like talking about them, always wanted to. And then they broke up with me because I wasn’t ready to comply with their needs and leave, which was fucked up. What's a relationship without sex right?”  He laughed bitterly, shaking his head to remove their thoughts. Louis was frowning, looking upset at that detail. Harry continued before he could say something consoling. “I’m over them now and they’re douches, but that's not my point. I’m so confused by you. You just don’t initiate anything more than a kiss and at first I thought you were waiting for me to be comfortable. Then I thought maybe you wanted me to make the first move but you’re just laughing at me. I don’t get it. Why don’t you want to fuck me? I don’t get you.”

Louis blinked at him at confusion, which changed to amusement as he understanding dawned on him. He was biting down on his grin, reaching out for him. “Harry, babe, it’s not like that.”

“Then what is it like?” he asked, pushing his lower lip in a pout as he threw his hands in the air. He was feeling confused now, by the turn their conversation had taken. He was feeling the unnecessary urge to flee but Louis’ blue eyes pinned him to where he stood. It was both comforting and anxiety inducing when Louis laughed, shaking his head fondly as he stood up. He was a few inches shorter than Harry, but stood tall despite it with his chin turned up. Harry always wondered how he did that, how he made him cover without the height advantage but maybe it was because he had immense faith in himself. Louis cupped Harry’s cheek, making sigh as he leaned into the touch, eyes fluttering shut. He was a fool, was all he knew as he continued speaking softly. “You never want to do anything sexual with me. It’s not as if I want it but don’t you want it? I’m asexual, and yeah it may come as a surprise to you, Lou because I don’t seem to be and all. I’ve heard it all. But I’ll do anything for you if you just ask. I love you. But am I not attractive enough for you? I can’t help but think that.”

“Harry, you are very attractive,” Louis said softly as he placed a chaste kiss on his lips. Harry opened his eyes again, searching for something on Louis’ face. He couldn’t find apprehension or distaste, just love and it was overwhelming in the best way. He let his arms loop around Louis, feeling his fingers caress Harry’s cheek. He sighed. “You’re very beautiful. Gorgeous, flawless, stunning...”

Harry chuckled, remembering one of their conversations from when they were fighting. He looked down somewhere behind Louis’ shoulder, biting on his lip. “But not sexy?”

“Come on Harry you know you’re fucking sexy,” Louis protested, and when Harry looked up, he was actually pouting. He laughed some more, the heavy feeling in his chest dissipating at the sight of his loving boyfriend. “Enough with the self deprecation. Your exes seem like douches and I’m not so shall we please sit and talk about it?”

Harry nodded absently, lips turned up in a small smile as he walked back to the bed. It was obviously not a break up and Harry hadn’t ruined everything, for which he was happy. He was still confused as to what was there to talk about, especially from Louis’ side but he sat down regardless. His feet felt weak from all the emotions he had gone through, still clasping Louis’ hand in his. Louis let go of his hands to thrust his shirt at him, at which Harry stared in confusion.

“You’ll get cold, love,” he said, poking at the butterfly on his chest. Harry giggled at the touch, making Louis’ lips quirk up. His eyes were a light shade of blue, sharp and attentive but just as soft. Harry liked it best when they were that shade, which often formed when Louis was happiest and he would like nothing more than to just stare in it. But they were in the middle of what was an important conversation, so he would have to focus. “Wait, did you wear that shirt for the strip tease?”

“Yes?” Harry said, lifting up the end unsurely. He had one arm in and Louis was laughing, crinkles forming by his eyes. Harry felt embarrassed again as he started buttoning his shirt up, biting down on his smile. “Red looks best on me, you know. Especially silk.”

“I know,” he said, nodding. Soon his laughs faded into the silence, face gaining an unnaturally serious look. Harry blinked at him, pressing his lips together as he nodded as well. “So Harry, do you really want for us to be sexual? To make love and all that?”

“I mean,” he said, looking away to smile at the choice of words. “Not really? But I thought that's what you wanted.”

“Have I ever asked you for it, H?” he asked, voice soft as his fingers lightly brushed against his cheek before tucking his hair back. He was looking on questioningly, making Harry pout as he drew his eyebrows together.

“No, you didn’t,” he mused, looking back at his boyfriend. “But I thought you laid down hints and I didn’t catch them. Wouldn’t be the first time.”

Louis laughed again, so melodic that Harry momentarily forgot the topic at hand. He didn’t understand what was so humorous about what he had said, blinking at his boyfriend in confusion as he fought back his smile. “My sweet boy, darling. You’re smart, beautiful and extremely cuddly. But at times like these, you can be so incredibly thick it astounds me.”

“What do you mean?” Harry asked, crossing his hands over his chest petulantly. He also may be whining, curling in on himself. Louis just shook his head and smiled.

“You know I’m not straight right?”

“Well obviously. Neither am I. And we’re dating so.”

“I also don’t identify as gay.”

“Yeah I mean... what?” he asked, cutting himself off as he blinked furiously. He frowned more, really not having expected the conversation to go the way it was. He was feeling cold, wrapping his arms around himself. “I don’t understand.”

“I also am asexual, Harry,” Louis said slowly, placing both his hands on Harry’s shoulder as he leaned in. “Just like you.”

“Me too,” he said weakly, making Louis smile.

“I know.”

“Thank god for that,” Harry said in a single breath, feeling as if he could breathe again. He smiled, feeling light and jumpy due to Louis’ confession. “Wait... what do you mean by ‘I know’? I don’t remember talking about it.”

“You didn’t,” Louis teased, grinning. “But you didn’t have to since unlike you, I can pick up on cues." Harry blushed, ducking his head before looking up at him through his lashes. “I mean come on, Harold. You never showed any interest in people and never realized someone was flirting with you. Besides, remember how the both of us left parties early together for months? That was a sign, Haz. And I realized you might be ace like me in the first week.”

“First week?” Harry asked rhetorically, pouting as he thought back on it. Thinking of it, it should have been telling. Also Louis had once called himself ace when Harry had called him straight. Was he really that dense but obvious? “You’re really observant then.”

“People have said,” he said flippantly, shrugging. He waggled his eyebrows suddenly, and Harry smiled knowing Louis was going to tease him again. “So Harold, how do you feel after the life altering confession of mine saying I’m demi homoromantic asexual?”

“Relieved,” he said, laughing joyously. “And also, you have really detailed it out, haven't you?”

Louis gave him a one-shouldered shrug before letting go of Harry to lean back on his arms. “I had a lot of time to think. I think that's what I think is the best description of my orientation but asexual is just fine.”

Harry followed his suit, leaning back on his arms as he continued looking at his boyfriend. “So is that why you broke up with your exes? Because you realized you were asexual?”

“Something like that.” he hummed. He closed his eyes, smiling at nothing and Harry watched. He was feeling relieved now at knowing that his sexual orientation wouldn’t be a problem and this may even last for years, if he was lucky enough. So he smiled at his lovely boyfriend. “I didn’t love them, you know so I thought it was wrong to just drag them along for the sake of it. It’s different with you because I actually love you immensely. With you it is easy, like I can be just me and it helps that you’re beautiful Harold, so I can just stare at you all day.” He opened his eyes, and looked at Harry, smiling. “You fascinate me, from the very first day. Even if you acted like an obnoxious ox then and a lovable goof now, I like you. Also, even if I wasn’t ace, I wouldn’t have broken up with you over not getting sex. You’re much more than that, baby.”

“Thank you, Lou,” Harry said, a small smile running on his lips as he looked away. His arms were hurting from being in the position for too long but he didn’t want to break the moment so he stayed put, looking ahead. “You fascinate me too, but I think I’ve told you that enough. Better not inflate your ego.”

“Hey,” he protested lightly, knocking their shoulders together as Harry giggled.

“I got so worried you’d leave me too, you know,” Harry confessed, smiling sadly and shaking his head. “But it was just me being ridiculous and over thinking everything as usual. I should have known, I mean you outright told me you were ace.”

“It’s no worry, love,” Louis cooed, patting Harry’s cheek as he held himself on one arm. For a person who claimed to never exercise, Louis was surprisingly strong. Maybe he lied about hating gym, who knows. “I’m observant enough for both of us.”

Harry laughed, arms shaking so he let himself fall into the soft mattress heavily. Louis did the same, laughing along. “I’m sorry for avoiding you when you wanted to talk to me, you know. I don’t have to tell you why I did that, you already know. But if that then at least I wouldn’t have made a fool of myself now.”

“Forget about that,” Louis said nonchalantly, tangling their legs together, which were still hanging off the bed in an awkward angle. They laid in silence for a few minutes, with Louis occasionally humming under his breath. Harry had gotten used to the twist of his legs, eyes closed as he was considering sleeping in that position. “But you know Harold, you could be a good stripper. Just need to work more on taking your clothes off and not getting tangled in them.”

“Hey,” he drawled, laughing in spite of himself. “You’re never going to let that go, are you?”

“Not a chance, honey.” Harry hummed, closing his eyes again and feeling drowsy. Louis poked him on the ribs, making him tickle and squirm. “You’ll hurt your back like this. Don’t sleep, shift first.”

Harry complied, grumbling without purpose. He immediately cuddled into Louis when they slept properly, tangling their legs together. They talked about how much they were comfortable or uncomfortable with sexual acts, finding that they it was more of not needing it than disgust. He talked about his exes while Louis added in about his own, and it was clear their exes weren’t the same kind. Harry’s exes were dickhead but Louis’ were lovely, yet he felt incredibly jealous of them for being his first. He tried to tame his jealousy but as always, Louis noticed it, laughing and consoling him.

“So kissing isn’t a problem right?” Louis asked when Harry was finding himself drifting into sleep with Louis’ soft voice and words. He blinked blearily, looking at his boyfriend and nodded. Louis was smiling fondly, his eyes crinkling and eyes almost narrowed into slits as he kissed Harry gently.

“I don’t mind giving blowjobs too,” Harry said, blinking at his boyfriend and pointedly looking at Louis’ crotch then up. His boyfriend was chuckling lightly, shaking his head as much as he could with lying down and murmuring ‘obviously’. Harry frowned, scrunching his nose. “What do you mean?”

“I’ve seen you eat a banana, Harry,” he said, eyebrows raised pointedly. Harry frowned more, making him laugh again. “Pretty sure everyone knows, dear. But that's alright.”

“You’re mean,” Harry said before nuzzling his head into Louis’ neck. He could feel Louis’ rumbling laughter in his chest, smiling against his boyfriend’s skin and hummed contently. Louis looped his arms around Harry and pulled him flush against him. “It’s easy for us, isn’t it?”

Louis hummed in lieu of a response before pressing a kiss against Harry’s head. “You know I used to think we were unlikely roommates?”

“Yeah?”

Louis hummed. “But now I think we’re kinda perfect for each other.”

“Always, baby,” Harry murmured as he chuckled. He fell asleep that way, with Louis’ hand rubbing his back and heart content and happy.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all liked it.  
> Kudos and comments are appreciated :)  
> Rebloggable post is [ here ](http://rainbowsandlovehl.tumblr.com/post/173861427933/start-a-revolution-from-my-bed-by-rainbowslovehl) so I'd love if you reblog too.


	3. Epilogue

Louis had probably never been so happy to see those almost blank walls, hitching his bag higher as he stepped in.

It felt different to be walking in again, different from how it had been when he walked in a few months. He felt like a different person now, happy and committed to his boyfriend with whom he spent his entire winter break. Leaving the snow covered hills and driving back into Los Angeles felt weird at first, with the stark different in weather and temperature but he had Harry with him so it didn’t matter. They spent most of the time talking and lying on the beach. It led to a lot of sand going in their hair.

Harry had taken upon him to talk a lot more about himself and his past. He would be the one talking as they lay in bed together, until his speech slurred and he gradually fell asleep. Louis didn’t mind listening, or talking for that matter, since they had had enough miscommunication for at least two years. He would smile softly and run his fingers through his boyfriend’s hair as he would go on about his dad, humming and occasionally commenting. He claimed he would be finding a job this summer, working like any other student and Louis hummed, saying he might too. He would be glowing all day, talking with his hands and Louis would just watch him speak, feeling completely endeared. He had never been so besotted and fascinated by someone after spending weeks with him doing nothing but talk. It was as if Harry had lowered his inhibition, unafraid to be silly and Louis would sometimes join in.

Gemma threw a NYE party, inviting all her friends. Harry and Louis didn’t know any of them but they didn’t hold themselves back either, dancing away in the corner as they drank. It might have been the first party they had really enjoyed, with Harry getting steadily past tipsy and completely drunk. He draped himself all over Louis, who was comparatively sober and somehow held his long limbs together before he tumbled down. They kissed like everyone when the clock struck ten, giggling against each other’s lips as everyone cheered for the New Year. Louis knew that this would easily be a good year for him, since now he had Harry by his side. His own little ray of sunshine. It was possible that Louis had fallen deeper in love with the boy.

“I’ll love you more than last year,” Harry slurred, leaning his head on Louis’ as they walked up the stairs. The party was dying down with it being past two am. Louis was supporting half of Harry’s weight with ease but it was difficult to make him walk up, since his long limbs were even more out of control. Harry giggled before hiccupping. “That’s my New Year’s resolution.”

“And I would tell you I love you every day,” Louis replied in jest, although it was quite possible he would comply with it. He wasn’t the person to show affection with words, especially not with those three but he wouldn’t mind changing that part. Especially when Harry shone as brightly as he did when Louis said he loved him. It made his heart leap with joy. “Now let’s get you to bed, you big baby.”

“I love you Lou,” he had said as he lay in bed, koala-wrapping Louis. “And I won’t end up like my dad.”

“I love you,” Louis had whispered, kissing his forehead. “Goodnight.”

Safe to say Harry woke up with a massive hangover the other day, groaning and regretting ever having drinking so much. Louis, who was feeling far better, just laughed and teased him all day before making him breakfast and kissing off his pout.

Harry had driven him around the city in his convertible and Louis loved that damn car. They had driven here in Louis’ car, which Harry had been parking. But he wasn’t here yet, Louis thought, frowning at the hallway.

He shrugged, walking in and keeping his bags by his bed. He had barely sat down that he heard the distant, telltale sounds of heeled boots, clinking loudly through the hallway. It made him smile automatically, heart feeling light as he kept his eyes on the floor outside. Harry walked in boots first, the sparkly silver boots standing in the doorway. He had recently splurged on sparkly boots, and had bought Louis a matching pair for his birthday. They currently matched with the glitter and heels.

“A little help please, Lou?” Harry asked, head poking over the cardboard box he was holding up. If he was being honest, Louis had taken nothing out of the said box. He had just picked the box right up and shoved in the car and Harry insisted he would carry it up. He took the box from Harry and shoved it under his bed before dusting off his hands. Harry was crowding into his space, spinning him around to capture his lips in a kiss before he smiled. “Thanks Louis. Feels good to be back yeah?”

“Indeed,” Louis said, pressing his hand against Harry’s chest. Harry’s hair was let loose, curling on his shoulders and flying lightly with the nonexistent wind. He was wearing a soft pink shirt today, one with his name embroidered under Louis’ palms. He traced the word absently, smiling at his boy. “But we won’t be able to nap all day.”

“Won’t be the worst thing,” Harry said, his laughter rumbling against Louis’ palm. He trekked back to his bed to lay down his bag while Louis launched onto his own bed. For a few minutes it was quiet, with the sound of Harry humming as he unpacked his bag. Louis was in no hurry to do so, knowing that sooner or later Harry would be the one to arrange or rearrange his closet. Liam and Niall were to arrive in a few hours and Louis had to say he missed them. They were like his best friends, especially after having let go of all his older friends except Luke. He closed his eyes, finding peace in Harry’s low hums. “Lou?”

“Yeah?”  Louis looked over, finding Harry sat on his pink bed with his feet crossed. His eyes were twinkling with mischievous and his lip pulled between his teeth. He suspected the green-eyed boy was up to something, especially since he was lightly touching his hair.

“I was thinking of putting on some music,” he drawled, eyebrows rising as he spoke. Louis’ eyebrows rose of their own accord, lips twitching with second-hand enthusiasm. He nodded slowly, lifting himself on his elbow as he stared expectantly. Harry grinned slowly, tucking his hair back as he reached beside him to grab his phone. He clicked just once on it, biting on his lip to contain his delight. A familiar music filled up the room, no doubt from the Bluetooth speakers Harry had plugged in some time. “As a welcome back and to reminisce.”

“Harry no,” Louis groaned, squeezing his eyes shut and laughing in spite of it. He heard Harry’s loud, honking laughter which made Louis smile at the boy. He knew Harry was playing ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ only to tease Louis, now that he didn’t like the song as much. He also knew Harry loved it more than him, which was a 180 from a few months back. But Louis smiled at his boyfriend, who had stood up as he laughed.

“Harry yes!” he shrieked. His cheeks were red, eyes bright and he looked enthusiastic as he lifted himself on his tiptoes. Louis turned on to his front to bury his head in his arms, giggling softly. “How great is this song, babe? Sing along with me now, come on.”

“Harold, stop the song!”

“ _So I'll start a revolution from my bed_ ,” Harry sang on top of his voice, throaty and shrill on purpose. Louis looked at him and smiled, watching as Harry spun on his raised toes like a clumsy ballerina. Harry winked at him and shrugged. “ _'Cause you said the brains I had went to my head._ ”

Louis turned onto his side again as Harry started dad dancing to the chorus, as he sang along melodiously with his eyes shut. The door had been ajar and the people who passed by smiled at him before walking away. Louis’ stomach hurt from laughter when Harry mimicked holding a microphone and singing into it.

“ _Her soul slides away, "But don't look back in anger," I heard you say_.”

Louis reluctantly joined in on the second verse, their voices harmonizing perfectly along with the song. He was having fun being ridiculous, following Harry’s moves and knowing they looked stupid. It wasn’t as if he cared about what anyone thought.

"At least not today,” they ended, in an unsaid contest of who could drag it for longer, grinning at each other. The song changed to Wonderwall, at which Harry insisted they slow dance to it. Louis wrapped his arms around Harry, laughing at his clumsy steps.

“It’s like dancing with a giant Bambi,” Louis teased, smiling when Harry laughed.

“Fuck off,” he said before capturing his lips in a kiss.

It would be a good year indeed.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you all liked it.  
> Kudos and comments are appreciated :)  
> I'm on [twitter](https://twitter.com/rainbowslovehl) come and say hi (oops!)  
> Rebloggable post is [ here ](http://rainbowsandlovehl.tumblr.com/post/173861427933/start-a-revolution-from-my-bed-by-rainbowslovehl) so I'd love if you reblog too.


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